Home Sweet Home
by Aria6
Summary: Roxas is an interior designer for a TV show and Axel is a rich playboy who sponsers them to redo his mansion! What romance will unfold? Will they find true love in the end? Read and review!
1. Chapter 1

_I hate my life._ Roxas sighed as he walked up the steps to the studio. Where had he gone wrong?

Probably in accepting a spot on a cable TV show. But it had seemed like a wonderful idea at the time. He'd be the next big TV personality, a great interior designer creating marvelous homes for people struggling to find their own style. The show was called _Home Sweet Home_ and they'd all hoped it would be the next great success.

It hadn't worked out that way. Roxas partially blamed the presenter, Larxene. He hadn't wanted a presenter when he started the show but the manager/producer had decided he didn't have enough camera personality to do both. So they show had Larxene, who was all big green eyes, blonde hair and had a high pitched voice that Roxas was sure could kill flies. He thought she was as entertaining as an STD but the producer disagreed.

Unfortunately, the viewers seemed to agree. He was the only one who received any fan mail and the show had lost its seven PM slot and drifted to two PM. Not good. Not good at all. They needed to do something to improve their fortunes or the whole thing might get cancelled and then what?

"Roxas, you're late." The producer snapped as he walked in the room. Roxas blinked stupidly at him as he waved impatiently at a chair. What did it matter? Larxene wasn't there yet. "We've gotten an amazing offer!" Roxas suddenly realized Alf was _happy._ What could have him grinning like that? And Marluxia was smiling like a Cheshire cat. Completely baffled, Roxas accepted the folder the producer offered him and leafed through it.

"What is this?" Roxas stared at photos of an immense home. A mansion, really. It was beautiful, built in a style that looked Italian to him. The brickwork was very white and it looked a little run down, but in a way that gave it a great deal of charm. The windows were very long and had bright blue panes while the roof was brown and some of the pictures showed a vast, beautiful pool. There were dozens of pictures including ones of the interior décor and Roxas tilted his head as he looked it over. Just judging from the pictures, the inside of the home looked like a period museum. Very pretty but very, very dated. It wasn't bad at all if you liked that look but it definitely wasn't Roxas' taste.

"This is your next project." Roxas just blinked and Alf grinned. "I know, I know, we don't have the budget to outfit a home like that! But that's the amazing part Roxas. Your budget for this job is unlimited!" Alf thumped the pictures with a forefinger. "The owner of the home is a huge fan. He's also a billionaire. He's covering all the costs and wants the whole thing redone, by us! The network loves it; they're giving us an hour, maybe two and moving us back to a prime time slot just for this episode. It's going to be called _Celebrity Home Sweet Home._ If this works out well maybe they'll up our budget and give us a better time slot."

"Oh." Roxas said weakly, feeling a touch overwhelmed. "Who is this billionaire?" It would probably be some old guy with a few strands of hair combed over his bald –

"Here's a picture." Alf slid a magazine over and Roxas nearly swallowed his tongue. He knew that face! "Axel Esposito. He was in the _Tattler_ two months ago when he broke up with his girlfriend, the actress Jessica Thorn." Roxas had definitely heard of that. There had been a child involved but Axel had denied he was the father and the DNA tests had backed him up. It had come out that she'd had artificial insemination and was basically trying to scam her wealthy lover out of quite a wad of cash. The sordid details had been all over the news. At the time Roxas had thrown the scandal rags in the trash but he'd never imagined he would meet someone out of them. "So we might be able to work a love interest into this –" Roxas tuned the man out as he prattled about Larxene using her wiles on the man. Instead he examined the picture. It was a candid shot, clearly catching Axel by surprise as he exited his home. The way he'd turned his head towards the camera, eyes a little wide and mouth slightly parted, was very flattering. How did he get his hair like that though? Was it natural? "Roxas! Are you listening?" Roxas blinked, coming out of his reverie.

"Of course." He said briskly, pushing back the picture as Alf glared at him. "Get the concept done by Friday. I'll be right on it." It would take a lot of work but he was already fired by the project. This house had beautiful bones and he'd be able to do lovely things with it. There was a full blueprint of the house included and Roxas whistled softly at the size. There were so many rooms. He needed to come up with ideas for all of them. "Now, Marluxia, I want you to make Axel –" Roxas tuned them out again as he began scribbling notes. Marly did catch his eyes for a moment and smiled. Roxas smiled back, very happy. He and Marluxia had been boyfriends for only a few months and he was glad it looked like their fortunes were on the rise.

Then Larxene breezed in like a stray thunderstorm. Roxas winced as she slammed the door open and sashayed in, taking a seat with aplomb. Alf gave her a smile, which annoyed Roxas. She was later then him, why didn't she get chewed out over it? But Larxene was the station darling. She could do no wrong. Alf quickly gave her a rundown and they immediately began discussing the on-set sexual tension.

"When can I meet with Axel?" Roxas finally managed to get a word in edgewise. If he let them, they'd go on plotting Larxene's attempted love interest forever. Alf blinked but nodded at the folder.

"His number is in there. Call him and arrange a time." Roxas nodded and picked up the folder.

"In that case, please excuse me?" He'd do his planning much better at his desk, with his color swatches and various tools around him. Alf waved him away and Roxas stood, starting out. All of the projects he did interested him, but this one was special. An unlimited budget, a beautiful mansion and a handsome owner?

Yes, this was going to be fun.

* * *

_Hello._ The voice on the other end sounded a bit blurry and Roxas frowned. It was two in the afternoon but it sounded like he'd woken Axel up.

"Hello. This is Roxas Ackers from _Home Sweet Home._ I hope I'm not disturbing you?" He didn't think much of Axel's habits if he slept this late. Was he one of those people who stayed up until all hours of the night? Probably.

_Oh no. _Roxas was relieved as the voice became more alert. _I was just taking a nap. What can I do for you Roxas?_ Axel had a nice voice, Roxas noticed. Very smooth and masculine.

"I was wondering when we could meet to talk about the concept for your home? Would tomorrow be good?" Tomorrow was Tuesday and he needed to have the concept ready for Friday so Axel could okay it. That would give him plenty of time to work on it.

_Let me check my schedule – hm. I have some business in the afternoon so we could meet in the morning or evening. Are you a morning person? We could meet around eight._ Roxas smiled to himself. That would give him the entire day to work on the design. _We could meet at my condo. I imagine you'll have a lot of papers to show me, and the coffee shop hates that sort of thing. _Roxas nodded. He knew exactly what Axel meant. Spreading out his diagrams at a café would be annoying at best. At worst, they might catch some stray coffee.

"That would be wonderful." He said sincerely and grabbed a pen and paper. "Where do you live?" Soon he had the address. It was for the best part of town which was no surprise. "Okay, I'll be there. Thank you very much."

_No, thank you. I'm looking forward to this._ Roxas smiled as he hung up the phone. It sounded like the billionaire really was looking forward to it. He couldn't wait to meet Axel. What would he be like in person?

He would just have to see.

* * *

"Welcome!" Axel greeted him at the door and Roxas was struck by the _presence_ the other man had. It wasn't just his dramatic coloring and good looks. There was an aura about him, something that drew the eye and made him the centre of attention. It reminded him a little of Larxene, actually. She had the same knack. "I'm glad to meet you. You're my favorite on _Home Sweet Home, _you know." Axel offered him a hand and Roxas took it automatically.

"Uh, really?" Roxas blinked, surprised as he shook Axel's hand. The redhead had a nice grip, firm but not painful. And his hand felt warm and dry. "I'm surprised you watch us at all with the two PM time slot." Axel grinned and Roxas felt almost captivated. He looked so happy, his green eyes sparkling.

"Oh, well. I might have started watching when I was tired but couldn't take a nap." He said and Roxas smiled ruefully. That figured. "But then I started taping the episodes and watching later. Would you like to take a look at my condo? It's a good representation of my style."

"Sure." That would actually be helpful. Axel showed him around and Roxas had the distinct feeling the place had been professionally designed. It was comfortable yet chic and modern. "How did your mansion end up looking like that?" The design of it was completely at odds with Axel's condo. Axel laughed as he poured them both some coffee and Roxas sat at the table, getting out his sketches.

"Oh, well. That was my father's place actually. He lived there all through his final illness and he hated change of any sort, when he was ill." At Roxas curious look he elaborated. "Alzheimer's. He had me very late in life." Roxas winced at that.

"Oh, I'm sorry." He knew how difficult it could be to have a relative with that problem. His aunt had to be sent to an old age home for the same thing. Axel shrugged.

"Some things, no amount of money can cure. But it made things easier. He lived there with several live-in nurses and attendants. Anyway, I haven't been back there since he died but I was thinking of spending a summer there and I need an entirely new look for the place. Wipe out the memories. So, do you think you can do it?" Axel brought over the coffees and Roxas smiled brightly.

"Of course!" This was the kind of challenge he knew how to answer. "I have some fabric swatches here and ideas…" Roxas began to run through his various design concepts and Axel listened intently, sipping his coffee as he watched the blonde. His eyes lingered over beautiful blonde hair and slipped down to gesturing hands. A small, secret smile crossed Axel's face before he began to politely answer Roxas' questions about his style and what he expected for the mansion.

Everything was going according to plan.

After the meeting was over Roxas left the house, bubbling with ideas and filled with inspiration. Axel had been a marvelous client to deal with. He knew what he wanted but was receptive to new ideas. They'd picked out color palettes for most of the rooms and Axel had laughingly designated one of the rooms as his 'fun place'. Roxas blushed as he remembered that but he knew the redhead was right. A room where he could do something completely wonky would make for good TV, since they could film Axel's reaction when he saw it. The mansion had so many rooms that Axel was cheerfully willing to sacrifice one bedroom to the cause. Roxas hoped to make it nice though. In fact, he was planning to make it into his own dream bedroom. Would Axel like it? He hadn't a clue, but it would be fun and good TV. His phone went off just as he was climbing into his car and Roxas paused, pulling it out as he slid into the seat.

"Hello?" He answered as he tapped his fingers against the steering wheel. He didn't like driving while answering a cell phone. Roxas had always been a cautious driver and Marluxia sometimes made fun of him for that, but what could you do. He wasn't adjusting his driving style for anyone.

_Roxas! How did the meeting go? _Alf. Roxas sighed to himself.

"It went great. I think he's going to be a pleasure to deal with. Why?" Alf usually didn't start hovering this early in the process. But then, this episode might make their fortunes. Maybe he was starting early. If so, Roxas wasn't happy. He hated it when the producer was constantly jogging his elbows. He was good at his job and didn't need constant oversight.

_The execs just want some hard data, you know how it is. Make sure that concept is ready for Friday._ Hovering for certain. Roxas forced a smile and bid him farewell before hanging up the phone. Idly, he wondered how Axel would get along with Larxene. Somehow, the thought was less than palatable. Axel was very nice and clearly had bad taste in women. He didn't need another bitch like Larxene.

Roxas shook his head at himself. Axel's private life wasn't his business. Pulling into traffic he set a course for the office. He wanted to get started on this design concept right away.

He wanted it to be the best design he'd done in his life.


	2. Meeting Axel for the First Time

"Beautiful house. Absolutely lovely." Roxas murmured to himself as he circled around the outside of the building.

He was at Axel's mansion, waiting for the billionaire to arrive. Axel was quite late although he'd called to explain what was happening. There'd been a three car pile up on the main route out of town and he'd gotten stuck in it. Roxas himself had probably only missed it by ten minutes. So while he was waiting the blonde had decided to get a good look at the outside of the house. The program usually focused on the interiors but they usually did some gardening and sprucing up of the outside as well.

"Bloody amazing!" Roxas looked over the pool, bedazzled. The pictures hadn't done it justice. Some serious work had gone into designing it and he was sure it was a one-off. It looked like a natural grotto, edged with realistic looking stone and filled with cool, clear water. One edge of the pool was built up into a pile of rocks and water spilled over them through clever piping, creating an artificial waterfall. There was a little robot thing floating on the top of it and Roxas blinked as he saw it dipping a net into the water and removing bugs. A mechanical pool boy, imagine that. "What's this?" He blinked as he saw a smaller grotto, offset from the main one. "Is that a hot pool?" It looked like it from the steam rising from it. Roxas knelt down beside it and dipped a hand in. "It is!" Standing up again, he looked over the pool area. There was nothing he could do to make it look better. A clever landscaper had put in little nooks filled with lively, beautiful plants around the pool and the pool chairs were all lovely. But maybe they could film an interlude with Axel and Larxene luxuriating near the pool?

Roxas frowned. Somehow, that idea left a bitter taste in his mouth. Shaking it off, he went back to his circuit of the building. The sexual tension between Axel and Larxene would be up to Alf and Larxene to create. His job was the building itself. His phone went off and he answered automatically.

"Hello?" That was a lovely terrace and completely unfurnished. He could –

_Roxas? Where are you? I'm by the front door and I can see your car but no you._ Axel sounded a little concerned and Roxas smiled as he set off around the house. Soon he had Axel in sight and paused a moment to admire him. Axel was wearing a fascinating pair of jeans that shaded from grey to red as he moved and was artistically frayed in places, exposing bright red strings. He was wearing a black silk tank top with it and a large, black and red Gucci belt. Axel looked wonderful and very, very rich.

"Oh sorry, I just took the time to check out the outside of your house. I'll be right there – ah, look to your right." Roxas paused and waved as Axel turned and smiled before waving back. He flipped off the cell and walked over. "This place is beautiful Axel." He said sincerely, making the redhead smile. "The landscaping is absolutely lovely." Aside from the terrace he couldn't see them doing much to the exterior of the house. The front yard was filled with flower banks surrounded by rocks and trees that had been shaped into topiary sculptures.

"It's a little old fashioned." Axel said reflectively as he unlocked the door. "But it is nice. Father didn't have much use for gardening so he just hired the best firm in the city and let them have at it. I've kept them on so it hasn't changed a bit." Roxas looked around curiously as the redhead led him inside.

He quickly realized the pictures hadn't really done justice to the place. But that wasn't a good thing. They hadn't managed to capture all of the chachkis and baubles cluttering up the place. Roxas goggled a little as he saw a small, very beautiful antique table in the foyer that was loaded with crystal butterflies. Axel followed his gaze and sighed.

"Yes. Well. My father was always a packrat but as his illness progressed he became a hoarder. He'd accumulated quite an assortment of crap before he was diagnosed. The nurses and aides got rid of everything that was completely worthless and I've been winnowing through it since, but there's still quite a lot." Axel seemed uncomfortable and Roxas realized the redhead was looking at him with worried green eyes. Acting impulsively, he gently touched the other's arm.

"It's okay. I understand. My aunt had Alzheimer's too, it's a horrible illness." He said sincerely and Axel seemed to relax a bit, smiling. "Do you mind if I get rid of all this?"

"Not at all. But it should be put into storage. Father had a taste for antiques before he got sick so I'm sure quite a bit of it is valuable." Axel replied and Roxas glanced around thoughtfully. If that was the case…

"You know, I just had an idea." He said brightly and Axel tilted his head curiously as they wandered through the house. Roxas took in the fleur-de-lis wallpaper with a faint shudder then found a very nice vase, picking it up. It was silver and an unusual shape but something about it screamed quality to him. Turning it over he blinked. "Tiffany?" The mark on the base was clear. "Yes. Well, this would be perfect. It's designed to highlight three truly beautiful flowers, you see?" It was basically three very slender vases in one. "It looks very art deco. I could plan an entire room around this vase." He could already envision it. Plenty of chrome and stark colors… Axel was nodding and Roxas met his eyes, feeling a strange twist in his stomach at the interest and enthusiasm there.

"I think I see what you're getting at. You could find someone from father's collection for each of the rooms and centre the design on it. I like it. Father had some truly wonderful pieces. Want to see if we can find more?" Roxas grinned as they began to search through the amazing collection of junk in search of the treasures that could make this house into a home. It took some time to find the items that really caught his fancy and sometimes Axel had to restrain him a bit. In particular, he found one statue that was authentic art nouveau and was absolutely beautiful. It was also regrettably nude.

"I love it and you love it, but Roxas, what about the viewers?" Axel asked with laughter in his voice and Roxas looked at the bronze statue with frustration. It was just so beautiful, a slender girl with very short hair stretching as though she'd just been awakened. "What about this? It has the same sort of art nouveau vibe but won't scandalize the audience." Roxas looked thoughtfully at the statue Axel was offering him. It was a pretty dancer with a face and hands made of ivory. It had been polished sometime in the past though, and that had ruined the patina. Still.

"That could work." He regretfully put down the nude statue and picked up the other one, putting it with the pile of items they'd picked out. Roxas was unaware of the time passing as he looked, found things, plotted and planned but Axel finally tapped him on the shoulder. Coming out of his creative haze, Roxas blinked at the redhead.

"You know, it's well past supper." Axel gently told him and Roxas paled, checking his watch. He'd been here that long? "Would you like to go catch a bit of supper with me? We're about ten minutes away from Garriston." That was a small town, more like a suburb of the city although no one would say so to the inhabitants. "They've got a wonderful little Swedish place, makes the best meatballs you've ever tasted."

"Uh." Roxas checked his watch again and considered the situation. If he went directly back home right now he was likely to get caught up in rush hour traffic. And it was the middle of the week. He wasn't planning on doing anything with Marluxia and this would be a business date. "Actually, I would love to." Axel smiled and Roxas felt that flip-flop again. He winced to himself as he recognized it and sternly suppressed it. So what if Axel was attractive? Axel was straight and Roxas was taken. Axel touched his hand for a moment and Roxas blinked at the gentle pressure.

"Thank you." Axel murmured and Roxas swallowed, wondering if he was reading too much into the warmth there. Probably. Banishing the concern he smiled again and followed Axel outside. "Do you mind if we take my car?"

"Not at all." Axel's car was quite a bit nicer than his. It was a lovely little Porsche and Roxas settled into the leather seat with a sigh as Axel put it into gear. The car felt nice and smooth even on the rougher roads outside the city. "So you've been to this place a lot? What's it called?"

"Mama's Meatballs. As you might guess, that's their specialty. You can even buy them frozen and the sauce that goes with them." Axel explained cheerfully as he glanced in his mirror and changed lanes. He was going much faster than Roxas would have but then, almost everyone did. "I sometimes make special trips out here just to visit them. They've been around since I was a little boy and father would take me there all the time."

"Ah, do you have a mother?" Roxas asked curiously then winced as Axel grinned.

"No, I came from the stork… hah! Yes, I have a mother. I never knew her though. She took off with an actor when I was just two. I never saw her again. I don't know if she's alive or dead." Axel didn't seem distressed about it. "What about you? What's your family like?" Roxas hesitated, thinking about what to say.

"I have a twin brother. His name is Sora and he means everything to me." Roxas gave Axel a faint smile. "My mother and father are still together although we all wonder why. They're not a very good couple. Other than that it was a boring suburban life." Of course, he was understating his parents' situation. He wasn't going to mention all the screaming fights to Axel or the way he and Sora had clung to each other and tried to block out their parents arguing. Axel seemed to understand though and nodded.

"I have a friend like that. We keep asking her why she just doesn't get divorced? But she says it's against her religion. I really can't imagine that that was what God intended. Not that I'm very religious at all, mind you." Axel said casually as he glanced at a few signs. "Have you been working in telly long?" Roxas was relieved at the change in subject.

"Oh no, not long at all. I thought it would be a good career move from being a freelance designer but it hasn't really panned out that way. Television seems to be all glitz without any stick, if you see what I mean." Axel laughed and Roxas smiled. He had a very nice laugh. "Although a regular paycheck where I can still do my thing is pretty nice. The producer lets me run with it, probably because he couldn't decorate his way out of a paper bag."

"Larxene seems to think she could do it, I've noticed." Axel observed and Roxas blinked, a touch surprised. That was certainly true but he hadn't thought it was noticeable to the audience. It annoyed him a touch.

"She'd be rubbish at it. She likes this horrible overstuffed style for everything." Roxas said, disgusted. Larxene often tried to shove her own taste onto him but he wouldn't stand for it. "I mean, sometimes its fine but with this show you really have to vary things. Make it interesting."

"You certainly do that. I love the episode where you made that wonderful playroom for the children." Axel said with a smile and Roxas stared. He'd known Axel said he was a fan but he hadn't expected him to really remember the episodes! It was amazing and Roxas felt a flush of pleasure. A hot, interesting billionaire was watching him every week.

They pulled into the restaurant and Roxas smiled at the sight of the slightly dinged up sign. Mama's Meatballs had meatballs instead of A's in the sign, and there was a large fork sticking out of the first one. It looked like a diner, but that was fine. Roxas wanted this to be a casual supper, not some kind of black tie affair. He'd just met Axel so that would have been terribly awkward. Soon he was relaxing in a very comfortable booth, sipping iced tea and waiting for their orders of meatballs and mashed potatoes to arrive. There were a few other choices but Axel had suggested he try the specialty first.

"So what were you planning to do with the bathroom?" Axel asked idly and Roxas brightened. He'd found a piece for that but hadn't really gotten into his plans for it.

"It's going to be lovely! You know that bronze statue we found of a girl carrying a jar of water? I'm going to make that the centre point. If we tear apart the next room we can put in a huge hot tub." Axel looked a touch surprised and Roxas knew why. That was a big job. "We'll have to make sure it's structurally feasible but it would be lovely don't you think?" They had an unlimited budget so why not? Axel smiled.

"It would be wonderful. I love the hot tub in my condo, especially when I'm not alone in it." Roxas flushed at that thought and suddenly imagined the redhead naked. No, no, bad thoughts! Bad! Although it was a beautiful mental picture. Too beautiful really. Roxas gamely replaced it with an image of Marluxia in the shower. The pink haired man always did look lovely when he was showering… "Roxas?" Roxas blinked as he came back to reality.

"Oh, thank you." He smiled as he moved his arms so the waitress could set down his plate. The meatballs were steaming enticingly and covered in a rich, creamy sauce. There was a salad and also a little container full of what looked like berry sauce. "What's this?"

"Elderberry sauce. Traditional Swedish cooking. Put it on the meatballs, it's delicious." Axel was cutting his meatballs in half and putting the sauce on the open side. A bit dubious, Roxas followed his lead and blinked at the taste. It really was excellent, nice and tart. "They have little apple fritters for desert. Delicious things. It's all a heart attack on a plate, mind."

"Heh, I'm not worried." Roxas dug in with good appetite. "I go jogging every day." It was one of his hobbies. Axel looked a bit surprised.

"Me too! Although sometimes I just go to the gym and use the machines, especially if it's cold out." He confided and Roxas laughed. "Yes, I'm a wuss, I know it."

"Well, I might too if there were any gyms in my area I could afford." Roxas said with a smile as he ate his meatballs. They really were excellent and Roxas made a mental note to see if he could buy some of the frozen ones. Marluxia wasn't fond of high fat foods but he could always make them for himself.

The rest of the meal passed very pleasantly indeed. Axel was a wonderful conversationalist and was genuinely interested in what it was like to be a designer. He didn't talk much about his own life, though, and Roxas wondered why until he remembered all those articles in the gossip columns. Of course he wouldn't talk about his life to just anyone, it could end up on the front page of the _Tattler_. It had to be horrible going through life thinking about things like that. Although the obscene money no doubt made it worth it. That was another good reason for Axel not to talk about his life much, come to think of it. A lot of people would no doubt be jealous of the handsome billionaire.

Roxas wasn't jealous though. He was intrigued. Axel was a bit of a mystery to him. What did he do all day? How did he spend his time? Who was he dating? The last question gave him an odd feeling but he ignored it. It didn't matter.

After a great meal Axel drove him back to the house and they parted ways with a few friendly words. Roxas glanced in his mirror and saw Axel waving goodbye. Smiling, he waved back.

He was going to enjoy working with the redhead. He was sure of it.

* * *

"So how was he?" Roxas glanced up frigidly as Larxene planted her rump on his carefully drawn diagrams. Why did she always have to sit on the corner of his desk when he was working? Didn't she know the papers were delicate? Pah, she knew. She just didn't care.

"He was alive when I left. Can't imagine he's died overnight." Roxas said irritably. "You'll get to meet him tomorrow." Larxene rolled her huge green eyes and chucked him under the chin. Roxas recoiled but she didn't care, leaning down to coo at him.

"Tell about _him_ sweetling. Or I'll spill coffee all over your precious plans." Roxas snarled something under his breath. He knew damn well she'd do it and get off scot free as always. He'd called her bluff once before and very much regretted it.

"Oh, very well. He's quite nice." Roxas gave Larxene a quick rundown of Axel's personality, hating every moment of it. Partly because he loathed Larxene in general but also because he was afraid Axel would get smitten with the bitch. Larxene would be doing her best to ensure it and not just for the good television. A handsome billionaire who wasn't gay? Oh yes, her clit had probably popped up like done toast the instant she'd heard. Roxas was aware the thought was horribly catty but couldn't find it in him to care.

"Well, thank you kitten." She cooed at him when he was done and stood smoothly, her coffee sloshing. Roxas watched in horror as a big gob of it splashed a swatch of cloth. "Whoops! Well, at least it wasn't your designs this time was it? Ta." She waltzed out of the room, leaving Roxas to try to salvage the fabric sample.

"Bitch!" He snarled at the door and vaguely wished he could do something, anything to get her back.

Larxene got on his nerves something fierce.


	3. Design for Dummies

Author's Note: If anyone wonders why my updates on some things are slower than usual I, um, might have gotten involved in breeding digital unicorns. Not that I'm admitting that. It's just a theory. _ *click* Ooh, rainbow mane!

Roxas licked his lip as he watched Axel perusing the papers. They were at his condo in the city and he'd been looking over the legal documents some time with a thoughtful expression. It looked like he actually _understood_ them, which surprised and worried Roxas.

The legal documents were an absolute necessity for the show. They kept any disgruntled former subjects from suing the show for damages to their home and work couldn't begin at all until they were signed. Roxas knew nothing at all about legalese but getting people to sign them was still his job, since that meant they were signing off on his design concepts. The papers for that were scattered about too. He'd run Axel through all of it. But it was taking the redhead so long to sign!

Roxas started at the sudden tinking sound Axel's pen made as he signed the documents. The redhead looked up and seemed to catch some of the tension he'd been feeling, giving him a small smile.

"Sorry if I kept you waiting. I'm trained as a lawyer, you know, and I just wanted to see if I still remembered." Roxas blinked at that.

"Really? That's interesting. Ever practiced?" He asked, interested. Axel shook his head with a smile.

"No. I never was really into it but father insisted I go to Uni for something. I think I'd hate actually being a lawyer. I'm glad I don't have to be." The redhead answered lightly. For a moment, Roxas felt fiercely jealous. He wished he could just do whatever he pleased and not worry about money! "I wish I had a career I really cared about. The way you feel about interior design, it's so wonderful to watch. You get so fired up over it."

"Err, really?" Roxas said, taken aback. Marluxia had said it was boring. "Have you tried to find something?" It hadn't occurred to him that Axel might envy his passion about design. But he really did love his job and wouldn't trade it for anything, and maybe it showed. Axel grimaced.

"Oh, plenty of things. I tried business of course. So deathly boring… I tried philosophy but it struck me as pointless, tried art but I have all the talent of a concussed guppy, and my poetry is putrid. I think Homer vomited in his grave." Roxas couldn't help but laugh and Axel grinned. "I thought about trying rock star but I can't keep a tune in a bucket. Just talentless, that's all there is too it."

"Except for being amazingly hot." Roxas said lightly and Axel's eyes widened. He winced as he realized he'd leapt right over the line. "Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to…" But then he blinked as Axel touched his hand, leaning forward a bit. His green eyes were so bright, it was mesmerizing.

"Don't worry about it." Axel murmured. "It's flattering. I appreciate it." Roxas blushed and suddenly wondered. Did Axel know he was gay? Surely not or he wouldn't be touching him like this! Roxas drew his hand back, clearing his throat.

"Still not professional of me. Ah, so have Larxene and Alf gone over the plan for the first shoot?" It was going to be different than their usual ones. But then, usually they dealt with overweight housewives who hadn't had sex in ten years and just loved the thought of being on the telly. Much like the two PM audience, in fact. Roxas knew he was being catty again but he was also unhappily sure it was accurate.

"Ad nauseaum." Axel sounded a little irritated, which pleased Roxas. Was Larxene getting up his nose too? He certainly hoped so. "If this weren't my favorite show, I'd be rethinking things." Axel smiled reassuringly as he spotted Roxas' alarmed look. "Don't worry, I'm really looking forward to seeing you in a prime time spot."

"Ah." Roxas reluctantly gathered up his papers. He'd love to spend all day speaking to Axel but he really did have work to do. He'd already gotten a building crew in order but he still needed to arrange for some storage vans to arrive during the filming. They were going to film taking out all the antiques and other things. Speaking of which… "Do you have a second set of keys? We should start packing up several rooms ahead of time." Roxas explained as Axel lifted an eyebrow. "Just leave a few for the cameras or this will be a tremendous lot of work." They only needed a few rooms to remain as they were to illustrate how cluttered the place was. Axel nodded.

"Certainly." He walked over to the wall and pulled a key off a peg. "This one. Would you be needing any help? I'd love to pitch in." Roxas hesitated.

"It's going to be hard work." He cautioned the redhead. They didn't really need him there… but Axel was nodding with a smile.

"I know, but I wouldn't mind. Besides, we both should be supervising, no? A lot of that stuff is expensive." Roxas winced faintly at that. Axel definitely had a point. He was employing a very reputable company, courtesy of the unlimited budget, but still. If anything went missing the show could be held responsible. "Besides, I'd enjoy it. Especially if you would come with me to Mama's for lunch."

"Err, sure. I'd love to." Roxas quickly decided. It was a business lunch, after all. Marluxia wouldn't mind. Hell, he wouldn't even notice. Roxas was often out and about so they hardly ever did lunch together. For a moment he felt guilty but then he neatly squashed the feeling. Axel was straight and this was a business lunch. Although maybe… maybe they could be friends. Roxas was smiling as he left the house.

He didn't have many close friends. Maybe Axel could be one.

* * *

"Mmm, nachos! We need more beer! Waiter, more beer please!" Sora called and Roxas sighed affectionately. His brother was terribly outgoing verging on obnoxious. Fortunately his light of the moment, a lovely young man named Riku, was taking it in stride as he munched on the nachos. They'd only been together a few weeks and Roxas didn't have high hopes. Sora was as fickle as the ocean was salty. "So what's this big project you've been so coy about? Finally going to redo the Queen's Palace?" Riku laughed and Roxas wanted to sissy slap them both. Instead he grabbed Sora's beer, draining it and making the other boy yelp. "My beer! You ass!"

"Get another." Riku was grinning, Roxas noticed. Not bad. "Okay. We're redoing a billionaire's mansion. Have you heard of Axel Esposito?" Roxas had the pleasure of seeing Sora gape at him.

"No way! Truly? That's amazing! Tell us all about it." Sora took a listening posture and Roxas smiled, describing the entire thing. Riku listened politely but Sora was clearly getting into it. "Wow, you're the lucky one, spending time with a billionaire all day. Is he going to be your sugar daddy?" Roxas made a face.

"At this rate he's going to be Larxene's. Besides, he's straight." He said tartly. Sora sighed and shook his head at the waste. "Most people are you know. It's how babies come into the world."

"Roxas, stop being such a cat – oh, there's Marly! Hey!" Sora waved with a smile that was just a touch too brilliant. Roxas knew his brother didn't like his boyfriend much but that just meant that Sora was always making an extra effort to be nice to him. The pink haired flower slipped easily through the crowd, pulling up a chair and ordering a gin and tonic. "Hard day?"

"You could say. Larxene was filming a few more scenes with the Kneevers. That woman is a disaster." Marluxia downed his drink quickly as Roxas grimaced. He knew exactly what Marly was talking about. That was the last couple they'd done a renovation for. In many ways they were quite nice, not too ridiculous in their expectations and very happy with the results. But for the costuming and cosmetics department they were both nightmares. The lady of the house, in particular, couldn't seem to sit still and kept tugging on her hair. She'd quickly turned into Marluxia's private despair.

"That'll be over soon. Then you'll be working with Axel." Roxas consoled him but Marly didn't look too thrilled. "He's not a spoiled rich boy, he's very polite. You'll see." Marluxia just shrugged. "Although we'll have to deal with Larxene being a whore the whole damn time." Roxas let his disgust show and Marluxia smiled before ordering a second gin.

"She's not that bad. Just has her eye on the main chance." Marly said and Roxas grimaced. He knew Larxene and Marluxia had always gotten along quite well but it was still annoying. "So how's the insurance business coming? Any good claims?" That got Sora talking. He and Riku were both insurance adjusters dealing with claims.

"Some amazing ones! Would you believe this guy had the balls to claim damages to his car when he ran it off a cliff in a fight with his wife over his girlfriend and their son? And he actually wrote that one the form!" Sora drank a long draught of beer before grabbing a handful of nachos. Riku sighed.

"As if any of us give a damn about his personal affairs." He commented. "Can we order some chicken wings? I'm starving." They quickly took a vote and it passed unanimously. A big platter of hot wings soon arrived and they all began to enjoy themselves. Roxas smiled as he let the chatter wash over him.

He was having a good time.

* * *

"Mmm, Marly." Roxas sighed in pleasure as his boyfriend touched him, arching up as the pink haired man explored his throat. Marluxia paused to smile at him, that smile that always seemed to hold deep and dark secrets. Roxas felt an immense thrill as he met the other man's eyes. His lover had been onto him as soon as they'd gotten into the house. Sometimes that would have annoyed Roxas but tonight he was definitely in the mood for it.

"Mmm, Roxas." Marluxia's deep, throaty voice made him swallow and his cock jump. Then he lowered his face and Roxas gasped, tangling his fingers in that long pink mane. Marly knew exactly what he liked and soon he was writhing under the taller man. Roxas gasped as his long, agile tongue teased him, finding every crease and crevice. Soon the blonde was panting and trying to hold back his release. It had been over a week, he was so ready for this…

"Marly, stop." He managed to say, pulling at his hair. "Stop." Marluxia pulled away, releasing him with a pop. Roxas gripped the blankets tightly as the pink haired man smiled at him, that same secret, sexy smile that had attracted him in the first place. And the way his muscles moved when he moved up the bed… Roxas closed his eyes and gasped again as he felt cool lubricant at his entrance, warm, agile fingers slowly opening him up. Opening them again he reached down to stroke his lover, finding an answering hardness that just begged to be touched. Marluxia made a deep, throaty sound that was oh so sexy before spreading his legs and – "Ah!" It stung when Marly shoved himself inside and Roxas had to bite his lip. He was always a bit rough about this part. But then Marly lowered his head and nipped his throat and Roxas forgot everything else as the pink haired man began to slowly thrust in and out of him. Each motion filled him with pleasure until it was almost unbearable. "Faster!" Roxas panted out but Marluxia only kept up that slow, steady, torturous pace. "Nnn!" Finally unable to take anymore, Roxas arched with a strangled cry, clamping down hard as he released. Marluxia gasped and came a moment later. Roxas felt the other man relax against him and looked up into warm, satisfied eyes.

"I do love it when you're in a mood." Marluxia murmured as he pulled away, slowly stroking his hip. "It happens so rarely." Roxas pouted and Marly smiled, brushing back a bit of his hair.

"You're just completely oversexed." Roxas said languidly, basking in the afterglow. "You know, there's this thing girls talk about, I think it's called foreplay…" Marluxia's teeth showed briefly, a flash of white before he kissed the blonde's throat.

"We're men. What do we need that for?" He murmured. A lot of the time Roxas would have disagreed but right now he was happy with the straightforward fucking he'd gotten. Reaching for the bed stand he managed to find a few Kleenexes to clean himself off with. He wasn't going to sleep with cum all over his chest. Just before he dropped off, Roxas wondered. What had gotten him so fired up?

He dropped off to sleep before he could find the answer but his dreams were haunted with bright red hair and green eyes.

* * *

A few days later, the shooting began in earnest.

"You look bloody wonderful." Roxas paused to admire Axel. The redhead grinned, amused.

"Why thank you." Axel was wearing a rather daring, up to the minute suit. The coat was brown and artfully worn to look almost ancient. Under it he was wearing a gold silk shirt and a dark brown string tie. His pants matched the coat. The whole ensemble wouldn't have worked for everyone but on him it looked great. Playboy billionaire indeed. Larxene waltzed in and Roxas had to suppress a smile. Her lovely blue dress was quite outshone by Axel's threads. Then he lost his smile as she laid a hand on his shoulder, leaning close to coo in his ear.

"Come darling, they're beginning the shoot outside." She said sweetly and Axel smiled pensively at her before nodding and taking her hand and moving it away.

"Of course. I'll be out in a moment." He said with a polite courtesy that struck Roxas as slightly forced. Larxene pouted for a moment then smiled again, sashaying out. Roxas dreaded that smile. It was the look she got when she'd found a challenge and didn't intend to give up. Axel took a deep breath and Roxas glanced at him for a moment, surprised at the unhappiness on his face. Then the redhead flashed him a quick smile. "You look wonderful too, by the way."

"I, er, I do?" Roxas said stupidly then blushed as Axel grinned. "Uh, thank you." He was wearing only jeans and a t-shirt with artistic paint stains on it. He preferred to look like a scattered artist for the show and Alf thought it was a good character for him. It helped that it was close to the truth.

"I always love the way you get a paint smudge on your cheek sometime during the show." Axel remarked as he led the way outside and Roxas' eyes widened. He thought only the desperate housewives noticed that.

"Don't call it adorable or I'll sissy slap you right into the next century." He said grumpily. Sora had noticed and always called it adorable. Axel shot him a startled look but Roxas wasn't going to apologize for that!

"I wouldn't dream of it – ah." Larxene was tapping her foot impatiently but was all smiled when she spotted Axel. Soon she had a hand on his arm and was leading him over to the cameras. When the film began to roll Roxas found he was impressed. Unlike most of their subjects, Axel was naturally photogenic and knew how to play to the cameras. If anything, Roxas thought he was a little better than Larxene. What a truly amazing thing.

Pushing aside the thought, Roxas stepped forward to take his own part in the encounter. It wasn't completely scripted, exactly, since they were always dealing with someone who wasn't an actor but he knew what he was going to say. He found himself delivering his lines about what they would do to the house with an unusual sincerity as he met Axel's eyes. The introduction was deemed satisfactory by Alf as soon as they were done and Roxas felt a glow of accomplishment. They usually had to reshoot that scene a few times before it was good enough.

The glow faded quickly though as soon as he found out what Larxene had planned.

"No, I'm telling you that bloody well won't work!" Roxas snapped at Larxene, who tapped her fingers against a pretty white globe. It reminded Roxas of a demented snowflake and was definitely an ultra-modern piece. Normally he'd have rather liked it but not right now. "We're patterning this room off the damn dancer. That's Art Nouveau. That thing isn't Art Nouveau in any way, shape or form!" She just continued her tapping and Roxas was tempted to break the thing but he held back. It had likely been expensive. The cameras were catching every moment of their tiff and Roxas glumly suspected that Larxene had okayed the globe with Alf long before. They loved to stage little conflicts with him.

"Roxas?" Axel. He sounded a touch tentative and Roxas turned to glare at him. "I don't mean to interrupt but you mentioned you were going to replace the chandelier in the dining room? Would that work, do you think?"

"I… uh. Hmm." Roxas looked at the globe more closely. The dining room wasn't supposed to be stark modern but he had been planning to use black, white and dark red as the colors there. He'd thought to get a modern crystal piece for the ceiling but maybe… "It could do. Yes, it could." He still didn't like it but he figured he could work it in. Larxene smiled in triumph

"Why thank you Axel." She cooed at him and Roxas grabbed the infernal globe with a scowl before leaving the room. He didn't want to hear Larxene sucking up to Axel any longer.

He completely missed the wistful look Axel shot at the door as it closed behind him before he went back to entertaining Larxene.


	4. Drama Makes the World Go 'Round

Larxene ate her sushi with a staccato rhythm, chopsticks clinking against each other in a pleasant metronome. She tasted none of it. Larxene didn't like food, it made you fat and that was something she would never allow.

When she'd found out about the upcoming show Larxene had thought she'd finally found her meal ticket. She aspired to be rich and famous and Axel could make her both of those things. The fact that he was a young stud, not some senile geezer was only icing on the cake. Even if they divorced before the year was out she'd get a fortune out of it and not have to wear a nose clip to bed until they did.

Unfortunately Axel himself had been the death of those plans. He was being nice and polite for the cameras and she was managing to get in the hint of attraction, but he'd dodged her invitations to something more with amazing skill. Probably that bitch before her had ruined him. Larxene sneered to herself. What a moron Jessica Thorn had been. Although it might work out well for Axel in the long run, she supposed.

Before Jessica Thorn, Axel had been nothing. Just a rich man who had inherited his wealth and was competent enough to keep it almost unchanged. Very good looking and a supreme catch but not the kind of person everyone would recognize on the telly.

Jessica had changed all that. A tall, beautiful blonde she had been an amazingly successful actress. She'd also been as bad with her money as Elvis. No one had robbed her, she'd just spent her way into a hole not even a god could climb out of. Fancy cars, furs, a private jet, stints at the casino… oh yes. To her Axel must have seemed like a godsend. She'd brought him into the limelight, taking him everywhere and the gossip rags had soon noticed her rich, handsome lover. There had been so much talk of marriage, in the rags at least.

But Axel wasn't interested in marrying Jessica. Larxene smirked to herself. No doubt he'd realized marrying her would be like marrying a sinkhole. Or maybe he just wasn't the marrying kind. Driven to desperation by her debts Jessica had taken the used condoms and tried to inseminate herself. Not a bad idea but it hadn't worked, so she'd gone to a fertility clinic instead. They hadn't been able to use the samples she brought so she'd used IVF instead.

"Idiot." Larxene murmured as she thought about it. Jessica had obviously counted on Axel not questioning the pregnancy. They'd had sex enough and she'd been faithful, by all accounts. She hadn't realized Axel was damn near sterile and knew it. Her plan had come apart and the whole sordid thing had gone into the papers. Now everyone knew Axel's name, although they also knew the sordid details of his private life. But such was fame.

Larxene dismissed the thought. It didn't matter. What mattered was that he wasn't taking the bait. She'd have to look elsewhere for her fortune. She paused to take a sip of the green tea, thinking as she stared blankly away.

If she let it, the show could easily sink back to its usual, humdrum content. Sure, they were hoping this episode would move the Gods of TV to put them in their proper evening place but Larxene damn well wasn't going to count on it. This called for _drama_. Larxene herself was far from a has been despite the damned show, she'd starred in plenty of commercials. If she could just get some drama going and use it as a springboard to something more interesting… Larxene smiled, a thin, nasty smile. She knew just the thing.

She'd never liked Roxas anyway. Damn poofy little designer, looking like a little kid in his jeans and paint stained shirts. Always putting down her ideas. It would be nice to put him in his place.

* * *

"Roxas, could I talk to you a moment?" Axel asked quietly. Roxas blinked, adjusting the paint brush he'd artistically placed behind his ear. It was a touch uncomfortable but looked great on TV.

"Uh, sure." The camera crews were catching Larxene having a tiff with one of the workers. It wasn't really staged, unfortunately. She was a micromanager and Roxas usually had to step in to break things up before they got really nasty. But if necessary one of the camera crew would page her to let her know she needed to break off and she'd feign having an urgent call. He and Axel stepped into the lounge area and Roxas smiled in pleasure. The art nouveau look really had worked out here. "What can I do for you?"

"Roxas…" Roxas looked up at the odd tone in Axel's voice and met green eyes. Axel looked uncertain and – afraid? "Why do you think I agreed to have all of you here?"

"Eh? You're a big fan of the show?" Roxas said uncertainly and Axel laughed before gripping his arm. The blonde swallowed as he felt another painful twist in his stomach. He wished Axel wouldn't do things like this. Didn't the man know he was –

"I'm not a big fan of the show, Roxas. I'm a big fan of you." Roxas felt his thoughts completely derail. Say _what?_ "I watched the show just to see you, the way you get so enthralled in your work, that kittenish growl you make when you… I'm sorry." Axel quickly said as he saw Roxas shocked face. "I'm not a stalker or anything. I just – wanted to meet you and do you a good turn at the same time."

"I – I…" Roxas stuttered, trying to think of what to say. "I thought you were straight." He'd been clinging to that all through the shoot, when Axel was looking at him so warmly or casually touched his shoulder or… had he been meaning to be seductive? He'd been damned good at it! Axel smiled a touch sadly.

"I thought I was too, until I saw you. And I think Jess has put me off women forever." Roxas could hear the soul deep regret in his voice. Was he still hurt by his past lover? But then, it had been a year, about time to move on and all that. Roxas struggled to think.

"Why like this though? Why spend so much money just to meet me?" Was all he could think to ask. It really had cost a couple million to completely renovate the place. Of course, that was probably just pocket change to Axel. The redhead shrugged.

"It was an innocent way to meet you and really get to know you." Axel coughed slightly, embarrassed. "I mean. I knew how you looked on the TV, but well, you could have had all the personality of a salted cod in real life." Roxas mouth slipped open in shock. "Or you could have really been a bitch like Larxene. No offense. So I wanted to see you in your natural setting, so to speak. Does that sound strange?"

"No." And it didn't. It sounded rather well thought out actually. Roxas had known actors and actresses who only came alive in their rolls and were completely different off the screen. How could Axel be sure he wasn't one of them. "Axel." Roxas hesitated before going with loyalty. He was the faithful type, unlike Sora. "I'm really very flattered and if I were free I'd take you up on it in a minute. You're a wonderful person." He said that very sincerely. He'd gotten to know Axel too and really enjoyed his company. "But I have a boyfriend." Axel's eyes dulled with disappointment but he nodded.

"I understand." He said softly and flipped out a small piece of paper, handing it to him. Roxas blinked at the handsome little card. It had a very simple little design but it was printed on fine cardstock and embossed with black and gold lettering. "My card. If you ever reconsider, or just need someone to talk to, give me a call." Roxas hesitated before taking it and putting it in his pocket. It didn't quite feel right but Marluxia didn't have to know.

"I'll do that." Roxas said and smiled. Axel really was a great guy. He wanted to get to know him better. They went back into the other room just in time to see Larxene flounce off, babbling into her cell. Roxas suddenly grinned. Larxene would have _kittens _if she knew about Axel's confession to him!

That thought would warm his heart for weeks.

* * *

"Riku is the best." Sora and Roxas were chilling in his apartment. Literally, really, the beer was ice cold. Sora took a long drink of it. "Mmm, this is good beer."

"Microbrewed lager." Roxas said absently as he pulled the got out the bottle opener. "What's so good about him?" Roxas was tempted to ask what Riku had that the other ten hadn't, but held off. Maybe Sora was really in love this time. Maybe Larxene was going to learn to be a decent human being too. He wouldn't bet on either one.

"What isn't good about him?" Sora's eyes got a little misty and Roxas blinked. Sora was always high on the first romance but rarely this completely gone. "He always knows what's happening, he can make me laugh and there's just something about him. The spark is so intense and the sex is so good." Roxas rolled his eyes surreptitiously. But Sora caught it and pouted at him. "You think your sex life is better?"

"Oh hell no." Roxas said and meant it. He loved Marluxia's technique but the pink haired man could just be so demanding sometimes. If he wasn't in the mood he needed to get into it, quick. And they just didn't talk much about the future, their plans. Sure it had only been two months but Roxas really had no idea what was going on inside Marly's head. Was that why Sora didn't like him? Shaking away the thought Roxas changed the subject. "You'll never guess what I found out today."

"What's that?" Sora listened politely at first but then was riveted to the story. "Axel likes _you?_ Oh my god Roxas, really? When are you breaking up with Marluxia?" Roxas' jaw dropped for a moment.

"What! You ass! I should just toss my boyfriend to the curb for the money?" Roxas was incredibly pissed. How dare Sora think he would do such a thing! "Would you toss Riku just like that?" Sora was taken aback.

"Well, no, but I actually like Riku." Sora said with brutal frankness. "You don't really like Marly that much, do you?" Roxas wanted to slap his brother. Mostly because of a knawing, unhappy feeling that he might be right. Marluxia was mysterious and sexy but did he actually _like_ the other man? Could he imagine spending his life with him?

"Just shut up Sora. You wouldn't know a good romance from a hole in the ground." Roxas grumbled as Sora looked hurt. Unfortunately, the same was true of him. Their parents hadn't been good role models at all. If he and Sora had gone by what they'd learned there they would have thought a proper family involved a lot of shouting about _That Whore _and _What You Did With My Brother._ Yes, that had been a popular theme. "How's work going?" Roxas changed the subject and Sora willingly followed.

"Oh, great! I think I'm going to get promoted." Sora confided and Roxas listened as he explained the office politics that had led him to that conclusion. Roxas was dubious but wished him well. Sora could certainly use the extra money. "And if it doesn't go through I'm thinking of applying to be a Chippendale's dancer." Sora said with an angelic smile as Roxas choked on his beer.

"You will not! You couldn't anyway, you're far too scrawny." Roxas said with a snort and Sora scowled.

"I am not! But speaking indirectly of manwhores, you'd better be coming to Thanksgiving this year. I think that's why Hayner left me last year, meeting the family was just too damn traumatizing." Sora said tartly. "You can damn well take the heat along with me this time!" Roxas privately admitted Sora had a point. Meeting their family for the first time was a bit like entering a frat boy's house right before the party. You knew there was going to be a lot of shouting, some throwing up and likely a fist fight before it was over. And you'd regret doing it the next day.

"Why do we even go to these things?" Roxas asked the world as he gazed soulfully into his beer. The world didn't answer. Sora did.

"Because if we don't mom makes our lives a living misery until we do. Remember?" Roxas sighed and tossed back his beer. "She only makes us come twice a year. We can handle it. Be brave."

"I'm just worried that someday I'll wake up with the names of my uncles tattooed around my anus." Sora just shocked at the suggestion and Roxas waved a hand. "I'm joking, I'm joking. Alright, I'll come."

"Bring Axel, mother would love him." Sora suggested impishly and Roxas favored him with a glare. "Come on Roxas, buck up! It would certainly liven things up."

"I'd only bring Axel with a bodyguard." He said tartly as Sora grinned. "I'll bring Marly. He can take care of himself." Roxas was sure Marluxia could handle anything that came his way. And if he couldn't, Roxas would always be there. It troubled him a little that he wasn't more concerned about Marluxia's reaction to his family. Was Sora right? Was he not in love at all with the pink haired man?

Roxas shelved the idea for later. Right now, he wanted another beer.

* * *

"Marluxia, darling. Can we talk?" Marluxia looked up from his work with a frown. He was planning the costumes for next week's episode and didn't appreciate interruptions. But Larxene's smile was both sweet and sharp. "I have a bit of news for you."

"Oh? What would that be?" He asked in a bored tone and her smile took on a razor's edge. Marluxia only watched her with a small, secretive smile. But Larxene was sure she'd judged him correctly. He would be very interested in her news.

"I don't think Roxas will have a job here much longer." She said softly and Marluxia's eyes widened slightly. "And it could be so difficult if you've been painted with the same brush as him… but things could be very different for an ambitious man who hitches his wagon to the right star." Marluxia didn't bother to quibble about her mixed metaphors, interested in her suggestion but wary.

"Perhaps." He said cautiously. "But then, an intelligent man would want some proof of the star's worth." Larxene's eyes flashed for a moment before she smiled again.

"Oh, you'll have that before the week is out. I guarantee it." She flipped him a card and Marluxia caught it easily. "Call me if you want to meet for drinks sometime." Marluxia watched her consideringly as she left the room, then put the card away in his wallet.

Larxene had been right when she'd pegged him as ambitious. He would definitely think hard about her suggestions.


	5. Sometimes You Just Have To Go

Roxas sighed as he looked over his new plans. After the unlimited budget and amazing art objects he'd enjoyed with Axel it was quite a shock to the system to go back to the boring grind. Bracing himself, he turned to a new set of color swatches. He was decorating the home of a newly divorced woman with three teenagers. Coming up with a concept for them that they would be willing to sign off on was going to be hard. He needed to at least try to please everyone although he wasn't going to be able to satisfy one of the daughters. She wanted a full length mirror although maybe if he could find one at a thrift store –

"Roxas? Can I see you for a moment?" The blonde looked up irritably as Alf looked at him from the doorway.

"Can it wait? I'm busy… Oh, fine." Roxas sighed as Alf gave him a stern look and followed him into his office. "What is it?"

"Roxas, what's this about you harassing Larxene?" Roxas stared, feeling his mind coming off the rails again. Say _what?_

"What? If this is about how I yelled at her at the Greenborough's she was totally asking for it." He said on auto-pilot. He didn't think that was it, they'd already hashed that out anyway. Alf scowled and handed him a sheaf of papers. Roxas took them, feeling numb. "Wha… I didn't send these!" They looked to be from his e-mail address though. He flipped through them, eyes widening. He'd never called Larxene a stupid whore! Although he'd certainly thought it. "What, you think I just went completely nutbar crazy this past week?" It certainly sounded like it. Alf gave him a severe look.

"Larxene says the trouble began over Axel's… interest." Roxas felt his mouth drop open again. Had she overhead Axel's confession? Surely not! She must have just made this up… "Everyone saw how you were flirting with him."

"What! I was not! He was flirting with me and I didn't send these!" Roxas threw the papers back onto the desk, his shock suddenly turning into fury. "How dare you believe that scheming bitch over me! She probably got onto my laptop when I left it around!" Roxas was ruefully aware that was possible. He'd always been bad with leaving it on when he wasn't there. No one would steal it from the set. Roxas had never anticipated something like this!

"Roxas, you're fired." Roxas stared, rage dissolving into shock again. He'd been fired before of course, but they'd mostly been idiots. He'd never been fired like _this._ "Pack up your stuff and get out, now." Alf clearly didn't believe a thing he was saying. It was his word against Larxene's and she was the station darling. Stifling a snarl, Roxas whirled around and stalked out. Pausing by his desk he flipped open his cell phone.

"Marly?" He said into it as his lover's voicemail picked up. "Hate to leave a message about this but I just got fired. That scheming minx… I don't want to discuss it like this. Could you meet me at the Lamp and Lantern later? Thanks." Roxas shut off his phone and started furiously packing his things. Could he sue for this? But if Larxene had got into his computer when he left it on it would be impossible to prove his side of things. No, it was better to just go on.

"Damn it." Roxas snarled as he carried his things to the car. He needed more. He wasn't sure Marluxia would be that sympathetic. Hell, he'd probably be worried about his own job! For a moment he considered calling Sora then pushed away the idea with a shudder. The brunette would probably be all for storming Alf's office with burning torches and pitchforks. Or throwing in stink bombs. Riku would try to hold him back but Roxas didn't think he'd succeed for a minute. No, he needed someone level headed who would definitely care about what he was going through… Pulling a card out of his pocket he dialed a new number.

_Hello?_ Roxas swallowed as he heard Axel's voice. He'd actually been rather hoping it would go to voice mail but at least this way he'd definitely get the message in time.

"Hi Axel? I've, uh, I've lost my job." So humiliating – but Axel's response was shocked.

_What! Why? Are they crazy? You're the only good thing about that show! _Roxas smiled, his heart warmed by that impulsive declaration. He certainly thought so but it was good to know Axel agreed.

"Well, I'm not about to disagree. Larxene says I've been sending her harassing e-mails. I bet the bitch composed them herself and mailed them off when I left my laptop alone. I mean, I didn't do it. I'd call her a cunt to her face if I had a mind to." Which was true. Roxas didn't shirk from conflict. Axel's laugh was warm.

_Good to know I'll always know where I stand with you. Do you need some help?_

"Just someone to talk to, if you think you can stand it. I already left a message with my boyfriend but I'm not sure he'll get it. If – If you don't mind, we could meet at the Lamp and Lantern. I haven't told him about you." Roxas added hurriedly. He knew he was asking a lot of Axel. Meeting Marluxia would have to be hard on him. There was a silence at the other end as Axel thought it over.

_For you? Of course. I'll be good, I promise. You heading directly over? _Roxas made an affirmative sound. _Then I'll probably get there after you. I'll find you at the bar, hey?_

"Yes. And Axel… thank you." Roxas said. Axel was really doing him a huge favor, being the shoulder he could cry on while he drank something hard and stiff.

_It's nothing. Later Roxas. _Roxas snapped his phone shut and got into the car, peeling out with tires squealing. He didn't want to be here a moment longer. Hell, screw the whole TV business. He was a designer! And being on the telly couldn't have hurt his reputation even if it was in the boondocks. No, he'd get his business going again. Get some contracts. He still had contacts, didn't he? Hopefully they were still good…

Roxas finally arrived at the pub, hoping against hope that Axel would be there. He wasn't, not that that was really a surprise. However, when he opened the door he got the second major shock of the day.

"M-M-Marly?!?" He stuttered as he saw the pink haired man already at the bar. How could he have beaten him here? And that golden hair beside him… "Larxene???" They were sharing a drink? What the hell? Larxene looked up at him with a poisonous smile and Marluxia only glanced over, cool and indifferent. "What the bloody hell is going on?" The way she was sitting beside him… she _couldn't _be. He knew Marly was bi but this just wasn't right! Unfortunately it was definitely happening. She whispered something to Marluxia and he laughed. The sound stung Roxas right to the core and he stumbled out of the bar into something warm.

"Watch where you're going –" He started automatically then gasped as hands gripped his shoulders, turning him so he could look into bright green eyes. "Axel?" He was peripherally aware that Axel had been right behind him and would have seen everything. From the look on his face, the redhead had understood it too.

"C'mon, I'm getting you out of here." Axel muttered as he guided Roxas to his car. Roxas was too dazed to protest, not that he would have anyway. Getting out of here sounded like a great idea. Yes, a wonderful idea. He roused a bit as Axel turned on the car.

"Wait, what about my car?" Roxas managed to say and Axel shook his head.

"Don't worry about it. You can give me the keys later and I'll get someone to pick it up." Roxas decided not to ask. Axel was rich and his condo was in a super expensive development. He could probably get someone to do that. Or they could just get it tomorrow, it wasn't likely to get towed during the night. He wouldn't be the first person to leave their car at the bar.

"Axel… Marluxia and Larxene…" Roxas was starting to process it. Marluxia had thrown him over for _Larxene?_ He abstractly understood that breasts had a great attraction to most males but _Larxene?_ She was repulsive! How could he possibly get it up for someone that poisonous? But then, he'd clearly misjudged Marluxia. Roxas briefly felt a great regret, not for his lost relationship but for the fact that Sora would be telling him 'I told you so' for _years._

"I know. Marluxia was your boyfriend?" At Roxas' nod Axel grimaced. "Stole your boyfriend and job in one day. Classy." Roxas took a deep breath and deeply wished he could get back at Larxene somehow. But how?

"Axel." Roxas felt an insane urge to just _go._ Forget about being unemployed, forget about how he'd be paying the rent when his savings ran out, forget about it all. The redhead glanced at him for a moment curiously. "Take me away from all this." Axel's eyes widened although he stayed focused on the road. "Take me somewhere far, far away where I won't have to give a damn about Larxene, my job or any of the rest of this bullshit. Please Axel, I don't want to think about this anymore." Roxas knew he sounded pleading but he couldn't help it. He just didn't want to be here anymore but Axel would probably think he was just using him for his money and –

"Okay." Roxas blinked at Axel's amused and happy tone. "How would you like to go to San Cristano?"

"Where's that?" He'd never heard of it. Although if it was something Axel was familiar with he was sure it would be good. Axel laughed as he merged lanes easily. They were getting closer to his condo.

"It's just the greatest casino this side of the ocean! They know me there, you'll love it Roxas. Ever wanted to get treated like a high roller? Now's the chance." Roxas was captivated by the thought. Treated like the world at a ritzy casino? Hell yes! That would show Larxene! Not that she would know about it, he supposed. But who cared? He would know! "I have a private jet, we can go right down."

"Bloody hell! Really?" He hadn't imagined that. But then, Axel was a billionaire. Although… "I'm, ah, a bit surprised you're willing to –" Roxas blushed as Axel reached over to gently touch his cheek.

"Ah, Roxas, I'd have paid money for a chance like this." Roxas' blush deepened at Axel's warm tone. "All I ask is that you take me for who I am. I don't want to be just the rebound to you, I want to be more. You know what I mean?" Roxas swallowed and nodded.

"I promise you're not just a rebound to me." To his surprise, Roxas' found that was true. He'd never really been that close to Marluxia, in his heart. He'd been hurt but the blonde didn't think he'd have much trouble getting past it and Axel was so fascinating. He'd been half-considering Sora's suggestion about dumping Marly even before this. It was just so right. "I'm not sure what you are yet to me, but not that." Would they end up lovers or just friends? Roxas didn't know but he wasn't willing to just jump right in the sack. He wanted to get to know the redhead. Axel chuckled softly.

"Fair enough. Why don't we stay there for a month?" Roxas' eyes widened at that. A whole month? "It's on the coast so there's plenty of sand to play in, lots of water sports, cruises… we'll have all kinds of things to do. And the city had plenty of sights too. We could even stay longer if we wanted."

"A month!" For a moment Roxas was enchanted. But then he remembered. "Oh balls!" Axel glanced at him curiously as he pulled up into his parking space. "I can't stay a month. I have to go home for Thanksgiving or Sora will castrate me and use my balls for a Christmas ornament." Axel blinked at the image.

"Hmm." Thanksgiving was only two weeks away. Axel got out of the car, thinking and Roxas followed as he walked up to the condo door. "Well, we could just take the jet back for Thanksgiving then go back to the casino if we've been having fun. Or go somewhere else entirely. How does that sound?" It sounded crazy, ludicrous, insane. Roxas loved it.

"Sounds perfect – wait. You're not wanting to meet my family are you?" Roxas felt a sudden stab of dread. Surely that wasn't what Axel was suggesting. The redhead grinned.

"I'd love to meet them! I don't have any family, you know. Father was an orphan and mother left when I was just a baby." Axel confided as he went to the bar to make them some drinks. "What would you like?"

"Something stiff and hard." Roxas winced as he saw Axel grin. "But not hot!" He could guess what the redhead was thinking. Hell, what any man would be thinking. But Axel just started making him a drink, skipping the dirty jokes. "What is that?" It was looking suspiciously red.

"Red absinthe cocktail. This stuff will fuck you up in no time." Roxas accepted the drink and chugged it back. It tasted pretty good actually and the alcohol had a hell of a kick. "Want another?"

"Please." Roxas wanted to get pleasantly blurry in a hurry. It wasn't every day your boyfriend left you for a bottom feeding, bitch of a – no, don't think about it. Think about Axel. Mmm. Axel did look wonderful. Roxas took in the sight of him, dressed in lovely black slacks and a beautiful brushed silk dress shirt with a lovely tie. Strange looking tie though, it seemed to shimmer through a dozen colors. Not a prim and proper tie, oh no. The kind of tie a playboy billionaire would wear. Roxas wanted to tug on it and –

"Second drink?" Roxas blinked and took the drink, blushing at his own thoughts. He wasn't going to jump into the sack with Axel that quickly! Even if the redhead was damned attractive. His eyes seemed to glow in the dim evening light and that wonderful hair slid over his shoulders as he undid his tie, tossing it onto a chair

"You know, I think I might be rather lucky." Roxas said without thinking and winced as Axel looked at him curiously. "I mean, I never really liked Marly that much but I don't think I would have broken off with him. And then I would have missed out on being here with you. And I'm really glad to be here." He really was. Maybe Marluxia and Larxene had done him a good turn in a way, even though they'd been trying to hurt him. Axel smiled slowly and reached over to take his hand in a warm grip. Roxas was enchanted by him all over again. The redhead was just so handsome when he smiled.

"I hope you keep thinking so." Was all he said. They drank quietly and eventually turned on the TV, watching a home selling program for a bit. The decorating of the house interested Roxas and Axel enjoyed it. They finally retired with only a chaste kiss.

But Roxas' dreams would be haunted by dreams of red hair and green eyes.

* * *

_Roxas, where ARE you? I just heard you got fired! Oh my god are you alright? _Sora sounded panicked and Roxas vaguely regretted not calling him. But hells, he knew what Sora was going to say about Marluxia and he just didn't want to hear it.

"I'm just fine. The bitch stole my job and my boyfriend dumped me for her, but I'm peachy keen. Say, did you know the clouds look lovely when you're looking at them from above." Axel made a choking sound and Roxas glanced over, grinning as he saw the redhead was struggling not to laugh.

They were high, high in the sky and well on their way to San Cristano. Roxas had been absolutely amazed by the plane. This plane was meant to have sky high parties! Not carry real passengers. He and Axel were sitting together on a cozy lounge, enjoying champagne and some really lovely dark chocolate. Not to mention some beautiful stinky cheeses and fresh fruit. If this was how billionaires lived Roxas was all for it.

_What? Oh god Roxas, are you on a roof somewhere? _Roxas had to laugh at that.

"How tall do you think any roof is Sora? Stop being a ninny! I'm just fine. In fact, I'm wonderful. I'm going on a dream vacation with a handsome redhead, just like you suggested. And if you say I told you so even once I'm ripping your tongue out, you hear?"

_Axel? You're with Axel? Oh wow! Where are you going? _Sora's tone abruptly changed to enthusiastic. And just as quickly went to petulant. _Why didn't you invite me?!?_

"You already used up all your vacation days, ninny. Not to mention that this is a private party, you bloody well can't come. Go snuggle up to Riku." Roxas suggested and Sora made a humphing sound.

_I will! Well, I was just checking to see if you were okay but it sounds like you're fine. Later Roxas._ Roxas smiled as he flipped the phone shut. As annoying as Sora could be, it was nice to know that he cared.

He could always count on his brother. That never changed.


	6. Stun Gun the Badger Beautiful Muffins?

_Ding ding ding!_

"Bloody marvelous!" Roxas glanced around the casino admiringly. He'd been to casinos before, of course. Sora loved to gamble although he did it very rarely. He could run through thousands of dollars in one go and that just wasn't kind to the bank account. But none of those casinos had been anywhere near as plush and well appointed as this one. The carpet was a thick, deep red and the walls had a lovely little pattern. On close examination he saw it was tiny hearts, clubs, spades and diamonds. The chairs at all the slot machines looked nice and comfortable.

Normally Roxas would have been very worried about his own bank account in a place like this. But Axel had given him ten thousand dollars in tokens on the condition he actually play with most of them, not just squirrel them away for later. Apparently he'd had a friend do that once and it had been rather awkward for him when he was betting and playing and his friend was just getting bored. Roxas had cheerfully agreed. It wasn't his money in the first place so what did it matter if he spent it? Although maybe he'd save a thousand for when he got home. That would certainly help tide him over until he found a new job. Pushing aside that thought he followed Axel as he made a beeline for the roulette wheel.

"So how exactly do you play this?" Roxas asked the redhead and Axel laughed, giving him a quick rundown of the game. Or rather, he tried to. "Bloody hell! I'll just put my chips somewhere." Axel grinned widely as a man beside them glared at them. Roxas didn't care and randomly put a hundred dollar chip on a spot. Axel smiled and laid down his bets.

It didn't take long for Roxas to prove he was hopelessly incompetent at roulette. The wheel seemed to have it in for him and, to make matters worse, Axel managed to sweep in tidy profit. What was a split bet anyway?

"Bloody hell! At this rate I'll run out of money." Roxas groused and Axel laughed.

"I can just give you more. Besides, at least I'll know it means you're having fun." To Axel that was more important than any amount of money. He wanted to show the blonde a good time.

"No, it'll mean I'm losing." Roxas grumped, examining the roulette wheel before he made his next bet. Axel smiled, expertly putting down his chips.

"You're so cute when you do that." Roxas blinked at him, lost. "When you grump like a little grinch." Roxas' mouth dropped out a bit. Little grinch?

"Well, I love that thoughtful look you get when you're looking through legal documents. You look like you belong on a law show." Roxas said and had the satisfaction of seeing Axel look slightly nauseated.

"I'm not reading legal papers for you." He said firmly and Roxas laughed. Then he wondered. Could Axel act at all? He'd seemed to be rather good at it during the shoots but then he'd been playing himself, so to speak. Could he act in general? He might make a really good –

"Roxas! You won!" Roxas blinked at the pile of chips in front of him and saw Axel grinning. "That was a terrible bet. I'm amazed. Hey, take your winnings." Pulling himself together Roxas scooped up the chips and looked at them, astonished. He'd just made back everything he'd lost and then some.

"Well!" For the first time, Roxas felt a real thrill. This was gambling! Not just playing on the slots. "Let's do it again!" He quickly put down a new bet and Axel laughed, following his lead.

This was definitely fun!

* * *

The days seemed to pass by too quickly. Axel and Roxas played at the casino, went down to the beach and enjoyed everything the casino and resort had to offer. There was an amazing buffet, although Axel refused to visit it. Roxas had been a bit shocked to find out why.

"I have no self-control at buffets." Axel admitted, a touch embarrassed. "I love the food but then I overeat and I'm miserable the rest of the day. Real restaurants are better for me." Roxas goggled a bit at that. The redhead was so slender and athletic he'd never have imagined he might have a problem like that! But then, he worked out every day and probably had a high metabolism as well.

"Well, that's alright. I'm sure the actual restaurants are better." Roxas said loyally. He actually doubted it, the buffet looked delicious. As it turned out, he was wrong. There were a good six different restaurants in the casino or very close by and they were all excellent.

As the week went on, Roxas learned a lot more about Axel. As a child the redhead had been a bit of a hellion and Roxas was very glad they hadn't gone to the same school. Sora and Axel would probably have gotten expelled. In fact, Axel had been expelled from his private school for managing to convince the entire class that squaids was running rampant. How he'd managed to sell them on squirrel aids with only the help of a stuffed rodent was a mystery to Roxas, but he'd caused absolute chaos for a while until the teachers deciphered what was happening.

"So dad sent me away to a boarding school." Axel said reflectively. "I rather liked it. I got to go skiing in the winter." Roxas blinked at him, feeling confused.

"You didn't miss your father?" Axel shook his head and Roxas felt almost guilty as he looked away pensively.

"Not really. He wasn't a bad man, you understand, but we weren't that close. He was nothing like me. So serious and dour all the time. I was mostly raised by the nannies, and they changed a lot. He wasn't easy to work for and I was a brat." Axel smiled then, his tone lightening. "I think I reminded him of mother too. His hair looked nothing like mine!" He ran a hand through his mane and Roxas smiled at the way the spikes shot right back up. "I remember you said your family life wasn't good, but you haven't told me much about your brother." Roxas took the hint easily and began describing Sora in graphic terms. He quickly had Axel laughing as he gave him a highly colorful rendition of Sora's personal habits. Roxas was just glad his twin wasn't there to here or he'd be getting a spanking.

And speaking of spanking something else, Axel looked truly wonderful when he laughed. Roxas admired him as they spoke, entranced by his bright green eyes and the lively interest there, the way the redhead gestured when he spoke. He was always moving his hands to emphasize his points and it was like a graceful dance. He could imagine those hands touching him and –

"Roxas, have you heard a word I've said?" Axel's question snapped him back to reality and Roxas blushed darkly. Fortunately the redhead didn't sound upset, only amused. "I asked if you wanted to go on a jet ski? The resort rents them out down by the water."

"Would I!" Roxas had never been on a jet ski before. It sounded fascinating. "I would love to – ah, you know how to pilot one right?" If not he was taking that back. But Axel grinned and nodded. "Then I'm right behind you!"

"Literally, you'll be sitting behind me." Roxas laughed and had to suppress treacherous thoughts of what he'd rather do behind Axel. Mmm. Yes. Oblivious, the redhead went on. "Should we snatch a bit of lunch before we go out? Something light?"

"How about that sushi place? I've been wanting to try it." Roxas reflected ruefully that he'd been eating a lot of fish since he'd arrived. One of the restaurants they were going to regularly was a rather fancy affair that specialized in fish cooked in every way imaginable. Poached, grilled, crusted in salt, battered and deep fried, smoked and sliced thinly with a lovely sauce… Mmm. Roxas was going to miss the fish when he got home. He'd never had fish and chips this fresh before.

"Absolutely! I could go for some sashimi." Axel liked the thought and soon they were ensconced in a little booth, sipping green tea and eating their sushi like barbarians. "You're not supposed to dip it like that, you know."

"Don't care." Roxas liked his sushi heavy with soy sauce and didn't care that it was murder on the flavor of the fish. Not to mention the wasabi and pickled ginger. Mmm. Axel just grinned and ate his sashimi. Roxas caught the way the redhead was watching him and wondered. Was Axel dreaming about him, too? The sexual tension was thick enough to cut with a knife! Roxas resolved to do something about that soon. He knew Axel much better now and everything he knew, he liked. He had no idea if he could have a future with the redhead but he was certainly willing to have a go at it.

Axel was oblivious to Roxas thoughts, although he was more than aware of the sexual charge between them. Smiling slyly, he started to play footsie with the blonde, who blushed. Axel found that enchanting –

"Is that a badger under the table? I think I've got a stun gun." Roxas said with a straight face and Axel winced, pulling his foot away. Then he caught the grin trying to escape behind Roxas' façade.

"You're horrible! Fortunately it's adorable." Axel suddenly frowned and Roxas turned to follow his gaze, curious. A tall, statuesque blonde had just entered the restaurant. She was wearing a lovely pure white sundress, delicately beaded and a necklace of beaten gold. Roxas eyed her consideringly and decided the hair had likely come from a bottle. It was a beautiful shade and a good job but after being with Marly he could tell it wasn't natural. The highlights were just a bit too artful. "Shit." Roxas turned back to Axel and blinked as the redhead grimly applied himself to his food.

"What is it?" He couldn't imagine what that woman had to do with Axel. Unless… Roxas blinked as a thought suddenly occurred to him. "Oh! Is that Jessica?" Axel hesitated then nodded.

"Yes, and she's not supposed to be here." Roxas frowned at that. This was a public place. "She was in gambler's anonymous last I heard."

"Oh." That made sense. For a problem gambler, coming here would be like a recovering addict hanging around with active drug users. He wouldn't likely be a recovering addict for long. "Well, not our problem is it?" Roxas said lightly but there was serious concern behind it. Did Axel still care about his ex? Axel looked a little startled then smiled cheerfully and picked up a piece of sushi.

"You know, you're right. It's not our problem." For him that was a liberating thought. He'd worried over Jessica for so long that it was almost second nature, but it was no longer Axel's problem. It was the problem of her new sugar daddy. Axel was quickly caught up in his little blonde friend again and was completely unaware of Jessica watching as they left the restaurant. It was just as well. The wistful pain in her face would have made him feel guilty and that was the last thing he needed. He and Roxas had a wonderful time on the seadoo's and paid attention to nothing but the sea and the surf in their hair. They didn't notice the man on the shore snapping photographs and if they had, they would have thought nothing of it.

"I love these fish and chips." Roxas said blissfully as he sampled his platter. They were at the fancy fish place, both a bit rumpled and smelling of the sea. No one cared. A billionaire could wear whatever he liked. Axel grinned and tried his own fish and chips. They were pub food done upscale, with batter as light as a cloud and fish so fresh it tasted like they'd come out of the ocean this morning. Likely they had. The chips were actually handmade parmesan fries, perfectly seasoned and accompanied by a nice selection of dips and sauces. Roxas was experimenting with those but Axel just stuck with ketchup.

"So do I. I've only had better once." Axel's eyes were a little misty as he thought about it. "That was when I was in boarding school. One time we took a field trip to the lake in the summer and there was a chip truck that served the freshest, tastiest fish I've ever had. It was as good as this and cost only a few dollars."

"Really?" Roxas was impressed. But then, street food could sometimes be the best food. "What lake was that? Maybe we should go there sometime." The words were out of his mouth before Roxas realized he was assuming he'd be with Axel a long time. But the redhead didn't seem to find it strange.

"Oh, it wasn't that great. The beach was crap and the water was full of weeds. If you're interested in street food, we really should go to Singapore." Roxas goggled at that.

"You've been to Singapore? Really?" Axel nodded with a smile. "What's it like? I've never been out of the country." For a brief moment Roxas longed for adventures. And if he went with Axel he'd be able to do it all in comfort! Normally travel brought vivid images of being crammed into economy with a smelly fat man right beside him, intruding into his space. Not that he could help it since the seats were so bloody small. But with Axel he'd have his own couch and lovely places to stay, not the local youth hostel. Roxas throttled down the thought manfully. He wasn't going to use Axel like that. If they were still together in a year or two it might be different.

"In some ways it's great. The most orderly city in the world. Also has the most draconian laws imaginable, but really they give foreigners a bit of slack as long as you're not being really stupid. It's good for me though, since I don't really need bodyguards there. Not like that time I went to Russia." Axel said reflectively. Roxas blinked.

"You have bodyguards?" He hadn't noticed anyone. Axel laughed and shook his head.

"Not usually. I just go places that are very orderly and have security staff. This place has security staff, you know." Roxas glanced around, surprised. He hadn't noticed anything like that. "The resort and casino get a lot of famous people who want to be undisturbed on their vacations. They don't let the press in except for arranged conferences, and they know that. The paparazzi can take pictures from a distance, of course, but they don't harass anyone here. Now, in Russia things were a bit different. A rich foreigner needs bodyguards as a matter of course. It's just too dangerous without." Axel frowned for a moment. "Actually, any foreigner needs to stay at a hotel with protections."

"Ah." That made sense. Roxas had heard a bit about the problems they were having with crime in the Soviet Union. "Must make travel there expensive, I imagine." But then, it wasn't like they were after the tourist trade. Axel nodded ruefully.

"You have no idea. I was there on business." Axel shook his head. "I'd never go back there for pleasure. It wasn't bad, exactly, but not my cup of tea." Roxas thought about it a moment and decided it probably wouldn't be his cup of tea either. The only thing about Moscow that would interest him would be the onion domes and he couldn't speak the language at all.

"Say, do you speak any other languages? I know a bit of German." Roxas offered and Axel grinned.

"Ah? I speak that too, and Italian." Axel said something in German then and Roxas blinked at him. Had he understood that or had Axel got it wrong?

"Roxas, you have beautiful muffins?" He repeated and Axel frowned, running through his sentence in his mind. "Were you trying to say I have beautiful buns?" Roxas grinned as Axel looked a touch embarrassed.

"Uh, maybe?" Roxas laughed at him, making Axel blush. "Oh, come on! I haven't used my German in years." The waiter arrived to take away their plates, saving Axel from additional embarrassment and offered them the dessert menus. "Please!" They'd come here so often they were getting familiar with all the desserts, but they were still very good. One in particular made Roxas drool, a pastry covered, deep fried cheesecake drizzled with chocolate. Axel preferred the pistachio crepes with ice cream.

"So you think I have beautiful buns?" Roxas murmured softly, this time with a warm, almost seductive note to his voice. Axel blinked as something began touching his leg, and he was sure it wasn't a badger.

"Everything about you is wonderful." Axel replied, his voice full of promise. Roxas felt a shiver of desire at that tone. God, he was so horny for Axel it almost hurt!

"Well, I think you have lovely muffins too." Roxas teased him and Axel grinned. He glanced down at the dessert menu then snapped it shut.

"Why don't we skip dessert and go back to our room early?" He suggested and Roxas paused. Cheesecake or Axel? "…You're actually thinking about it?" Fortunately Axel sounded highly amused. Roxas blushed darkly.

"I bloody well love cheesecake, alright?" Axel's laughter didn't help and Roxas tossed his menu aside, flustered. "Ah, screw the cheesecake, I want something else sweet." He'd been dying for that for weeks. The cheesecake would always be there later. Axel grinned and took his hand.

"Let's go." They didn't need to wait for the cheque. Axel had everything billed directly to his rooms. They left hand in hand and Roxas was acutely conscious of the redhead beside him as they took the elevator back up to their rooms. Then Axel put an arm around him, trapping him against the wall and lowering his head. Roxas lifted his head, lips parted invitingly and they stole a kiss, enjoying the sweet contact before the elevator doors opened with a ding. Fortunately there was no one there. Feeling almost intoxicated, Roxas went with Axel to the suite.

"So Roxas, how are we going to do this?" Axel murmured as they stepped into the bedroom and Roxas blinked as warm arms slid around him, pulling him into a very pleasant embrace. Roxas relaxed against the redhead. "Did you want to be on top, or shall I?"

"Eh what?" Roxas was surprised. Axel had said he was bi but clearly he liked ladies so Roxas had assumed he'd be wanting the top. "You would let me?" He blushed lightly as Axel grinned, kissing his cheek for a moment.

"You're so cute. I've never actually been with a man, but Jessica could be a bit, ah, kinky." Axel said delicately and Roxas' eyes widened.

"What, she used a strap-on on you?" Roxas asked, fascinated. "Or was it a butt plug?" Axel blushed and buried his face against the blonde's neck.

"You have no tact whatsoever." Axel muttered and Roxas felt a bit bad, but only for a moment as Axel lifted his head and he saw the redhead was struggling not to laugh. "It was a strap-on. And no matter how big you are, you can't be as big as that thing!"

"Oh really?" Roxas didn't doubt it was true, but still. "That sounds like a challenge!" He growled, that little kittenish growl he knew Axel loved, and shoved the redhead up against the wall. He had to stretch up a bit – curse him for being so tall! – but then he was assaulting Axel's throat, nipping the soft, velvety skin. Axel seemed to love it and bent down for a kiss. The sexual tension exploded in messy kisses and vanishing clothing. Roxas wasn't sure how it happened but his boxers were on a bedpost and Axel's shirt was over them and Axel was tumbling onto the bed, Roxas straddling him.

"God, Roxas." The breathy note in Axel's voice heightened his desire and Roxas glanced around, searching. "Right over there." Roxas followed Axel's gesture and grabbed the bottle of lube off the bedstand.

"Had it right out?" He said as he opened it, spreading the cool liquid over his fingers. "You were ready for this." Axel grinned.

"I was hoping. And you know the boyscouts motto, be pre – ah!" Roxas' fingers silenced him and Axel groaned as the blond carefully prepared him. It had been a long time since he'd done it this way but he quickly adjusted to the questing fingers. Soon the redhead was panting and his hands were exploring Roxas, slowly stroking his erect length. Which made Roxas think of something.

"Speaking of being prepared, where's the condoms?" While he was certain Axel didn't have anything he'd be daft not to be careful. The world was a big, scary place. Axel snorted and pointed back to the bedstand. "Of course."

"Right. Now stop talking and do me." That command made Roxas swallow and he quickly ripped open the condom, spreading the pink – pink? – plastic over his lover. "Condoms in support of breast cancer?" How bizarre. Axel groaned.

"Roxas! Please, I'm dying here." The sight of his lover slowly putting on the pink condom, along with what they'd just been doing, was making his libido go wild. Roxas grinned at him and lubed himself up before positioning himself over the redhead. It was a little awkward, maybe, due to the height difference but that didn't matter a bit when he slowly went inside. Axel's legs were pushed up and Roxas rested one hand against the redhead's chest, the other around his arousal as that wet heat enfolded him. "Ah!" For a moment Roxas was afraid he'd hurt his lover but then he saw the look on Axel's face. That wasn't pain. "Roxas, _ah! Yes!_"

The feeling was glorious, amazing. The tight heat, the warm flesh and the tantalizing smell that was _Axel._ The sight of flashing eyes, beautiful red hair and wanton desire on his lover's face. Marluxia had never completely lost himself like this in sex, never, and Roxas found himself coming close to the edge from the sight of Axel so undone. The rhythm speeded and Roxas couldn't hear anything over his own heartbeat in his ears and the pleasure the feeling ah the _pleasure…_

Axel cried out under him and something in Roxas snapped at the sound. He gasped and thrust powerfully into his lover, a short burst of energy before he came in a rush, light flashing behind his eyes. He gave Axel a few quick jerks and the redhead released, arching up off the bed and clenching tightly around him. Roxas rested his forehead against Axel's chest, spent and trembling with the aftershocks. He could feel Axel's heavy breathing and licked away a bit of sweat from his skin.

"Oh… god." Axel managed to murmur, eyes half-closed and heavy lidded. "That was… amazing." It had been a long time since he'd had sex this way and it hadn't been the same then. Well, it had been with a girl for starters. Roxas laughed shakily, slowly pulling away.

"It was, and so are you. Oh, we're sharing a bed tonight." Until this they'd been in separate rooms. Axel laughed.

"Now and forever." Roxas swallowed at those warm, loving words. Would this really be forever?

He certainly hoped so.


	7. Stop Calling Sora

"Mmm, Axel." Roxas moaned throatily as the redhead penetrated him, filling him. It felt so damn _good, _being taken from behind as he knelt on the bed.

It was early morning and they were having a second round. Now that he'd gotten a taste Roxas was greedy for more and Axel felt the same way. But his ass was aching and Roxas liked it both ways, so they'd decided to do it like this. It felt just as good as the first time and maybe a little better. Axel was taller so it was so easy for him to catch his lips in a kiss as they –

_Bring bring bring!_ Roxas snarled and Axel's pace slackened as the cell phone went off. It sounded like it was right under them! Roxas yanked the covers and fished the dratted thing out, glancing at the screen.

"Sora. Ignore it." He muttered and Axel laughed, speeding back up and kissing the back of his neck. Roxas groaned as the redhead stroked him in time with his thrusts. God this was _wonderful –_

_Bring bring bring! _Roxas gamely ignored the phone. _Bring bring bring! BRING!_

"Fuck!" Roxas snarled as Axel laughed. He quickly snatched up the phone. "Someone better be dead or you're going to be!"

_Roxas you won't believe it! Have you been reading the Tattler? Have you? _Axel did something _amazing_ to him just then and Roxas groaned as the redhead's hands touched him just _so_ and was that bastard chuckling? He thought this was funny! _What was that noise… oh my god. Roxas, are you having sex? Did you answer the phone while you're having SEX?!?_

"You called me back three times in a row you twat! I thought you were dying! Now go away and _don't call me again!_" Roxas snapped the phone shut as Axel laughed again. "And you! Stop laughing! It's bloody well not – ohhh…" Roxas gasped as Axel deftly fingered his slit. Damn but he was good at that!

"Little grinch." Roxas wanted to smack him but lost himself in the pleasure instead, the timeless, wonderful sensation of really good sex. Axel pumped him with every thrust and Roxas felt himself getting closer and closer to the edge, the way he kept hitting that spot inside that made him squirm –

_Bring bring bring!_ Roxas snarled and grabbed the cell phone, throwing it against the wall with all his strength. There was a sad tinkling and he was sure he'd done some serious damage but he didn't give a damn. He was going to come any moment and the damn cellphone could just –

"AH!" Roxas found his release in a moment of pure please and Axel came at almost the same moment with a low, sexy growl. Roxas could feel his hot breath against his neck and wanted to do it again. Alas, the flesh was weaker than the spirit and he panted softly, exhausted as Axel nuzzled his throat.

"Damn. I never thought a cell phone going off during sex could be that sexy." Axel murmured and Roxas' eyes widened.

"That turned you on? Freak." Roxas sighed as the redhead pulled away from him and slid down onto his side, avoiding the messy spots on the bed. "You're bloody awful. You know that?" The words came out as friendly banter. Axel smiled and touched his cheek, lowering his head for a long, intimate kiss.

"You love it." He whispered and Roxas could only agree, although he was keeping that to himself. Damn but Axel was sexy. "Maybe you should call your brother and see what he wanted. It might be important."

"Knowing Sora? Not bloody likely." Roxas snorted but slowly pulled himself out of bed. Maybe Axel was right, maybe the house was on fire or something. But he rather doubted it. Looking at his cell phone he frowned. It was trashed. Shrugging, he picked up the hotel phone and examined the instruction slip beside it. He quickly dialed out to his brother's cell.

_Hello and welcome to Sora's house of anal sex! How may I assist you? _Roxas rolled his eyes. The voice was female and he could hear Sora in the background trying to get his phone back.

"Put Sora back on Kairi, it's not a bloody telemarketer." That was probably what she'd thought. Sora had a special ringtone for him and his name displayed as well, when he called from his cell. Kairi laughed and Sora's voice replaced hers.

_Sorry about that. Roxas! You're done having sex?_ Roxas winced as he heard Kairi laugh in the background again. He was never going to hear the end of this one.

"No, he's blowing me off and I figured I'd call you – of course we're done you ninny. What do you want?" Roxas grinched at his brother. Sora sounded perky and upbeat when he replied.

_Sorry about that but Roxas have you been reading the Tattler? Have you? You've been in it twice!_ Roxas blinked at that. The Tattler was the kind of magazine they sold next to the candy bars at the checkout isle. A complete piece of drivel, in other words. Why on earth would he be in it? _I didn't tell you the first time because you would have been upset but the second time is excellent! You're having an awfully good time aren't you?_

"What? What in hell Sora?" Roxas scowled and grabbed a robe, pulling it on and stalking over to his laptop. He was vaguely aware of Axel following his lead, pulling on a black silk robe he'd brought with him. That thing was sexy too – "I'm turning on my computer. What date were these articles?" He wanted to get to the bottom of this. Sora cheerfully related the dates and Roxas snarled as he pulled up the first one. "They wrote about how Larxene stole my boyfriend?" Fuming, he read through the putrescent piece of journalism. There was a rather good picture of him looking stunned as he stepped into the bar. Why, that bitch had a photographer with her!

_Yes, that was why I didn't call you about that one. Skip to the other! _ Roxas was reluctant… he wanted to properly insult the reporter who had created this steaming little turd… but followed Sora's directions and went to the next piece. Axel was looking over his shoulder and snorted as he saw it. Roxas stared, taken aback. There was a candid shot of him and Axel on the jet ski, enjoying themselves in the ocean. A really flattering shot too Roxas would have loved to have it as a framed picture to remember the trip by.

"Former star of the show _Home Sweet Home _– Star? I bet Larx loved that – is seen whooping it up near the ocean with Axel Esposito." Roxas read the byline. "Bloody hell, someone was spying on us!"

"That's paparazzi for you." Axel commented as Sora laughed. "Commentary from Jessica? Ah! _That's _what she was doing here." Axel said it like he'd just had a revelation. Roxas frowned and began reading the article. It wasn't really bad at all compared to the first piece of tripe. Some commentary from a female fan of the show about how she'd known it was love at first sight – ack, pth! – and a quote from Jessica about how she was glad Axel was going on with his life and finding happiness. There was a picture of Jessica gazing wistfully after them and that made Axel quiet for a moment before he shook his head.

"The female fans of your show are really into you being gay, hey?" Axel said lightly. Roxas made a face. "At least Jessica wasn't here to gamble. I bet the paper paid her to come so they could get all those tragic romance shots." Roxas shot him a look, wondering again if Axel was still holding a torch for his old girlfriend. But he didn't seem particularly upset. Just a bit relieved. "That's good. Hopefully she didn't go near the baccarat table."

"Why do you care? She tried to trick you into having a baby with her." Roxas demanded. Why did Axel care at all about his ex-girlfriend? The redhead gave him a small smile, gently resting a hand on his back.

"She wasn't a bitch, Roxas, no matter what the papers might have said. She was an addict and her drugs were shopping and gambling. She was desperate and couldn't see any other way out of the hole she'd dug for herself." Axel shrugged. "She's not my responsibility but I don't wish her any ill. She's filed for bankruptcy and is finally managing to kick her habits. I hope she succeeds for the babies' sake."

"…Oh." Roxas said quietly. That made Axel a better man than him. He would gladly fry Marluxia's testicles and have them for breakfast. On the other hand, Marluxia hadn't been an addict, just a complete asshole. Would it have made a difference if he were some kind of addict? Hmm, probably. "Say, I was wondering." Roxas decided to change the subject a bit. "How'd you know the baby wasn't yours? I've been wondering about that." Axel looked startled then laughed, long and loud.

"I thought everyone knew about my prosthetic left nut by now!" Roxas goggled at him. A prosthetic nut? What the hell? "Look." Axel parted his robe and ran a finger over his thigh. Roxas looked down and stared. How had he missed those scars along Axel's thighs? But then, they hadn't done oral sex last night and the room had been dark.

"What the hell happened to you?" Roxas tried to imagine what could have caused marks like that and winced. That would have hurt. Axel cheerfully explained.

"Oh, well. Remember how I mentioned that we went skiing in the mountains when I was at boarding school?" Roxas nodded, wondering how this pertained to a prosthetic nut. "I had a bit of a disagreement with a tree about where it should be putting its branches. I lost."

"Ouch!" Roxas shuddered. "You tore off your left nut?" Axel nodded.

"Hurt like you wouldn't believe. I also lost the right one, but they managed to reattach that. Recovery was awful though." Roxas goggled again at the thought. Erm, eek! "My sperm count is terrible though. I was told at the time that I'd likely require IVF if I ever wanted to have a baby. I never told Jessica about it, we never really discussed kids and my near emasculation has always been a painful topic. So she had no idea."

"Oh." Roxas gave him a curious look. "It doesn't seem to bother you now." That was a bit odd. Axel grimaced.

"After having it printed in every magazine and newspaper in the country? I had to give interviews about it! Any embarrassment has been scorched out of me." Roxas winced at that. Then his stomach grumbled, reminding him that it was morning and he hadn't had breakfast yet.

"Yes. Well, speaking of nuts I could go for some muesli about now." He said brightly and Axel stared, a touch horrified before bursting into laughter.

"You're horrible!" Chuckling, Axel went to place the order with room service and Roxas smiled to himself.

He enjoyed being horrible.

* * *

Over a week later.

"Thanksgiving." Roxas grimaced as he checked over his clothing. Dark brown, check. Stain resistant fabric, check. Nothing he gave a damn about, check. Axel was wearing jeans and a regular t-shirt. He'd wanted to wear something quite a bit dressier, a normal reaction to meeting your lover's family. But Roxas had insisted he go as casually as possible. He'd rather they thought Axel was a mechanic at the local auto-shop than a billionaire! They were at Sora's place, waiting for the brunette to get ready. His car, a perambulating junk pile, had finally given up the ghost so they were giving him a lift. Axel glanced around curiously, taking in the messy apartment.

"It's just like Sora's mind, a bloody rat's nest." Roxas confided to Axel. The redhead shook his head with a smile.

"Oh, I don't know. It's kind of welcoming." Despite all the books and magazines strewn about there was something about the apartment. Maybe it was the warm hues and painted walls, but Axel wouldn't have minded staying here a while. Roxas made a face.

"Well, Sora's welcoming alright –" Was as far as he got before his brother bustled out. Roxas shook his head at the bright blue shirt he was wearing.

"Someone's going to spill a drink on you." He prophesied. Sora just grinned cheekily.

"I don't like this shirt anyway! Hello Axel." He gripped Axel's hand and gave him an enthusiastic pump. "You're going to love this, all our aunts are just dying to meet you. Not to mention the cousins but they love any handsome man –"

"Wait, what?" Roxas cut in, a feeling of dread settling over him. "They don't all know who he is do they?" Axel looked a touch alarmed as Sora smirked. Yes, the brat was smirking!

"Oh Roxas, I had to show them the newspapers!" Sora said, sweet as honey. "Especially after the way you scared me, taking off like that. I needed to let them know you were okay." Roxas stared at his brother, horrified, then suddenly rushed at him. Sora dodged him with a laugh.

"Why you evil little - !" He snarled and then had to pull himself up short as Sora hid behind Axel. Axel tried to get away but the brunette was onto him like a flea on a dog. "Sora!" Roxas was trying to figure out a way to kill his brother without damaging Axel when the doorbell rang. Sora darted away to answer it.

"Riku! Hi! I wasn't expecting you here tonight –" Sora started to say when Roxas had a moment of true inspiration. Yanking his brother back he smiled at the startled silverette. Oh yes, he had a use for his brother's lover now!

"But it's perfect that you're here!" He said smoothly. "You don't have any family to spend Thanksgiving with, do you?" Roxas knew for a fact that Riku didn't. The silver haired young man was an orphan. "You should come with us and meet the family!" Riku looked startled but pleased until Sora choked and sputtered.

"No! Roxas, what do you think you're doing!" Sora tried to yank away his brother, oblivious to the confusion and faint hurt on Riku's face. The silver haired man hesitated before stepping inside and shutting the door behind him. He and Axel watched the brothers squabble a bit before Riku cleared his throat.

"I would like to meet your family." He said cautiously and Sora shot him a horrified look. "…Unless you don't want them to meet me." Riku said softly and Sora winced.

"It's not that!" He said hastily. "It's just that they're crazy! Insane! Utterly gone!" Riku nodded but Sora could still catch the hurt under his calm exterior. "I – I oh gosh." Sora was caught in an agonizing quandary. It would hurt Riku if he didn't invite him but he really didn't want his lover to meet his family. His family had precipitated break-ups before. "I – I would like to have you." Sora finally said but shot Roxas a look that promised the blonde pain later. Roxas just smirked back.

They'd eventually make up but for now he owed Sora a bad turn. This Thanksgiving was going to be special indeed.


	8. Thanksgiving

The first sign of things to come appeared as soon as they stepped through the door to Roxas' aunts' house. She was hosting the gathering of the clans this year and it wasn't really a bad house, although it was definitely in the bad part of town. The main reason she was holding Thanksgiving, though, was the sheer size of her backyard. Although that wasn't the first thing that struck Axel about the place.

"What the hell?!?" Roxas covered his face with one hand as Sora giggled helplessly. Axel was trying to avoid the single minded romancing of the family dog. He was a golden retriever and so inbred he was probably lucky not to have two tails. Not to mention being about as smart as a concussed guppy. Roxas wouldn't have been surprised to find out he really thought Axel's leg was a dark colored bitch. "Guys, get this thing off me!" Roxas snorted but helped peel the dog off his lover's leg. Attentions rebuffed, he took off with his tail between his legs as Axel tried to straighten his clothes. It proved to be pointless a moment later.

"Roxas!" Roxas yelped as he got hugged by something very large and a bit gooey. "You're cute as ever! Say hello to your favorite aunt!" Roxas yelped as his cheek got pinched. He hated that! The pincher was his aunt, a huge woman who always felt a bit damp and who wore several layers of incredibly floral prints. Along with the sunglasses on a beaded string, she looked like an eternal tourist.

"Hells!" He jerked away but she only laughed and Roxas rubbed his cheek, glowering. Axel was staring and Riku looked a touch alarmed, but that was normal. Auntie Em had that effect. "Try not to tear it off next time." He said crabbily. She responded by patting him on the head like a child.

"So crabby. Sora!" Sora squeaked as he got glomped and pinched. "Who's your handsome friends?" Axel tried to sidle behind Riku but he wasn't having any of it. They both ended up with their own vigorous hugs.

"Axel and Riku. And don't you dare pinch their cheeks. Where's mother?" Roxas asked. Auntie Em looked at Axel with interest but it was just curiosity. She was happily married to his Uncle Jack.

"She's in the back helping your grandpa roast the pig." She gestured vaguely. "Along with all your cousins. Go say hello and grab a beer, darlings. I was after, hmm, what was I after?" Looking a little befuddled she went into the living room. Roxas knew the feeling but he wasn't about to help. Grabbing Axel's hand he led him towards the backyard. Maybe if they slipped in quickly enough they could –

"Hey look, it's So-So and Rox!" Well, there went that idea. Roxas turned to look and saw one of his nicer cousins waving and grinning like a fool. "Hey!"

"Bloody hell." Roxas muttered as several of the female cousins caught that call. Some of them were damn pretty too. He gripped Axel's arm with a scowl. He didn't doubt Axel's feeling for him but he also didn't doubt his cousins would do everything in their power to get him away from him. Not just because they were gold digging minxes, not all of them anyway. Plenty of them were just horny. Several girls were sizing up Riku instead. And –

"Yah!" Roxas almost jumped out of his skin as someone patted him on the bottom, and it wasn't Axel. The redhead turned with a serious scowl but Roxas could handle it by himself. "Ralph! Keep your bloody hands to yourself you bloody pervert!" His uncle, a registered sex offender and member of sexaholics anonymous, smiled amiably. He was actually tremendously handsome, with wavy brown hair, good features and a winning smile. It was too bad he had a thing for raincoats and dressing up in woman's underwear, usually stolen from their clotheslines. He was doing a pretty good job of repelling the cousins but Roxas didn't consider it an improvement.

"But it's been so long since I've seen your cute little ass Rox." He said vaguely and glanced over Axel. "Who is this? You have a new boyfriend?" It figured that Ralph hadn't heard. No one had probably thought to tell him.

"His name is Axel. Go speak to Sora, he's got a new boyfriend too he'd love to introduce to you." Roxas said nastily. Ralph smiled vaguely and went over to do that. Roxas had the satisfaction of seeing him pat Sora on the butt before he grabbed Axel's arm and towed him out into the yard. The yard was actually rather nice in a completely tacky way. Axel looked at the garden gnomes wide-eyed. They were holding little tools and grinning in a way guaranteed to traumatize small children. Most of the children in the back yard didn't seem to care though. Roxas winced as there was a loud, piercing shriek and a horde of kids romped past. He was sure that someone would get bitten and kicked before the night was over. He only hoped it wasn't Axel.

The adults were better behaved but, alas, just as distressing. The horny cousins were only the tip of the iceberg. Most of his older uncles weren't wearing shirts and a ton of chest hair was in evidence despite the autumn chill in the air. Roxas had a theory that the extra pounds plus the hair made good insulation. It was also a frightening sight and Roxas steered Axel towards the roasting pig. His father was there and he'd at least be wearing a shirt.

"Roxas!" Roxas suffered through another glomping but this time it was his mother. There was no getting out of that. "It's been so long. Let me have a look at you." Roxas reflected ruefully that she would usually have taken him to task right then and there for missing last Thanksgiving. Clearly she was putting a bit of effort into not looking like a complete shrew in front of Axel. His mother looked a lot like Sora but where he was sunny and happy, she had hard lines on her face from frowns and anger. "You're looking good." That made Roxas worry that he was putting on a few pounds. But then, with all the time he'd spent at that casino how could he not? At least he was probably putting on muscle too. Axel liked to go to the gym and Roxas had been going with him.

"Thanks mom. This is Axel." He was sure she'd heard but it was still good to be polite. "My new boyfriend." Axel smiled and offered her a hand, clearly hoping to make a good impression on his lover's parents. Roxas wanted to sigh. He didn't even like his family, except Sora, but Axel couldn't seem to understand that. They shook hands and his mother smiled.

"So I've heard! I hope you're going to be better for him than that horrible man with the moldy hair." Roxas choked. Moldy? He rather liked that though. Hah! Axel blinked then laughed.

"I'll try!" They made a bit of small talk and Roxas tuned it out, looking over dubiously at the picnic tables loaded with dishes. One of the huge problems with Thanksgiving was the food. Everyone brought a dish including the people who really shouldn't. The trick was figuring out what was what. Riku was already trying something and Roxas considered warning him but then decided that was Sora's job. Where was the brunette anyway? Oh, he was talking to their father. Soon Axel had been introduced to all the important people and was getting a full dose of their family hospitality. At first everyone was unnaturally well behaved but that quickly slid back into the usual patterns. There was only so long his family could fake it.

"Don't eat that." Roxas glanced up with a frown. It was one of his many female cousins, this one regretfully unattractive. They were about to take some potato salad and Axel looked confused.

"Why?" He asked and she smiled. For a brief moment Roxas was afraid she was going to flirt with Axel. But her concern was completely different.

"My mother made it. The mayo was moldy, she just scrapped the top off." Axel looked revolted and Roxas winced. They immediately backed away from the dish.

"Thank you." Axel said sincerely and she nodded before going to grab some more of the roast pig. "I think I'm just going to stick with the barbecue Roxy." The pig was actually pretty good and he was sure it wasn't lethal. He suddenly grinned and Roxas followed his gaze to see Uncle Ralph getting leg humped by the family dog. He was swearing and trying to get it off. Roxas was just glad Ralph wasn't enjoying the dogs' attentions. That would have been way too much.

"Hey everyone, watch this!" Roxas looked over with a mixture of delight and foreboding. Those were famous last words with his family. Sure enough, one of his male cousins was holding up a shooter glass full of alcohol that he'd set on fire. Axel frowned as he watched.

"Doesn't he know you blow it out before you – oh!" Roxas grinned at Axel's shocked tone as the man downed the small glass of alcohol. Unfortunately, it wasn't easy to do that without spilling a bit when you'd filled the glass to the brim. The burning alcohol set his beard on fire and everyone laughed for a moment before realizing it was serious. Then his drunk cousins put out the blaze by smacking the man in the face until all the fires were finally out. "Roxas? Has anyone told you your family is insane?"

"Oh yes, lots. They belong on Jerry Springer but he couldn't fit them all on the stage." Roxas said sourly and Axel laughed. "We'll have to stay until the first fight breaks out. Then we can make an exit."

"The first fight?" Axel was highly entertained. "There's going to be more than one – hey! Watch it." He snapped as one of the kids almost ran into him.

"Fuck you grandpa!" The kid retorted and Axel's eyes narrowed. Before Roxas could stop him he'd given the boy a cuff around the ear. Roxas stared, shocked, as the boy ran off crying.

"Wow!" Axel blinked as he realized that might not have been the most diplomatic thing to do. But Roxas sounded admiring? "Most people don't figure out how to handle that so quickly." That was pretty much normal discipline for his family. Roxas could remember getting plenty of cuffs when he was a child. Axel laughed before sampling a bit more of the pork.

"Oh, well. They probably weren't raised in a religious boarding school. The nuns were a bit strict. I can remember mouthing off to Sister Mary and getting slapped right across the mouth." Axel smiled ruefully. "I was a brat when I was younger." Roxas smiled, putting an arm around Axel's waist.

"That I can see." There was a shout and something about 'my John' and 'how dare you' mixed in with several calls of 'get her!'. Axel craned his head to see what the excitement was but Roxas gripped his arm, grateful beyond words that it had finally degenerated to the fighting stage. "That's our exit sign. C'mon." They paused only long enough to grab Sora and Riku. Sora was looking a bit soppy around the edges and Riku seemed a touch green.

"That potato salad tasted funny." Riku muttered as they got into the car and Axel and Roxas exchanged a horrified look.

"Will he die?" Axel asked, sotto voice. Roxas shrugged.

"Probably not." His family had eaten worse. Although they were used to it and Riku wasn't. They'd just have to see how it went. It was way too late now. "So what did you think of the family?" Roxas raised his voice and Axel laughed.

"I've never been so glad I don't have one. Eh Riku?" He glanced into the backseat. From the look on his face the silver haired man was struggling not to throw up. "Um, Roxy, pull over the car?" Roxas glanced back and quickly evaluated the situation.

"Hells!" Fortunately they weren't on the highway yet and he managed to pull over in time for Riku to bolt out and be violently sick by the side of the road. "Sora, weren't you watching what he ate? Sora?" Roxas turned around in his chair to see his brother sound asleep. "Damn alky."

"I don't think that's food poisoning." Axel spoke with some experience. He'd traveled quite a bit and dealt with all kinds of issues. "That takes a while to show up. Maybe he just drank too much. Here…" Axel unbuckled himself and opened the door, going to help the nauseated Riku. Roxas sighed and waited patiently. Soon Axel had Riku bundled back up in the back seat. "So we only have to do this twice a year right? I think I can handle that." Roxas glanced over and was relieved to see that Axel was serious. He quickly flashed Roxas a smile. "I'm not letting your family scare me off." Roxas couldn't help but smile as he brought the car back into traffic. He'd really been worried that his family would scare Axel off.

"Just don't lend them any money, you hear?" Roxas said spiritedly as Axel grinned. "You'd never see a penny and they wouldn't be grateful, the bastards." He was sure several of them would be asking Axel for loans soon.

"Several of them asked. I said I'd have to talk to you about it." That satisfied Roxas. Most of his relatives would know that the odds of getting money out of him hovered around zero. "Shall we take these two back to my place or drop them off at Sora's apartment?" Roxas took one look and made a quick decision.

"Your place." Roxas hadn't quite moved in with Axel but he was spending most nights at the condo. It would be a lot easier just to take Sora and Riku home and besides, they were in no condition to look after each other. Axel nodded. He had a guest room in his condo that Sora and Riku could easily take. "Thanks Axel."

"It's no problem." Axel was more than glad to put up Roxas' brother.

Hopefully, Sora would be his family too.

* * *

"Bloody hell!" Roxas grumbled as his cell phone went off. He'd finally gone out and gotten a new one. Axel muttered something and nuzzled his shoulder in his sleep. "What time is it…" Checking the clock he saw it was eight in the morning. Not obscenely early but still much too soon. Axel nuzzled him and Roxas relaxed, closing his eyes –

_Bring bring bring!_ Groaning he pulled away from the redhead, ignoring his sleepy protest. Glancing at the phone he saw a number that was vaguely familiar but he couldn't remember from what. Roxas flipped it open, rubbing his eyes blearily.

"'Ello?" Roxas managed to say and yawned. He was so damn tired but maybe this was a client –

_Roxas? _Roxas blinked at the voice and the seriously stressed tone in it.

"Alf? What the hell?" Roxas hadn't had any contact with the studio after his unceremonious firing. He didn't want any either. "What the bloody hell do you want? You've got some cheek calling me like this!"

_I know, I know._ Alf sounded really distressed but Roxas' sympathy was nonexistent. _I'm really sorry about how things went but would you consider coming back to the show?_

"After you fired me? Why in hell should I?" Roxas snapped. "Let me guess, Larxene spent all the budget in one episode and left the next day?" There was an aghast silence.

_What the – how'd you know? _Roxas snickered. He hadn't actually known but it had been an educated guess.

"Oh, she was always onto me to make everything top notch. She never could stay within a budget. And of course she'd bail when the ship was sinking, it's what she'd do. Where'd she go?" Roxas was only slightly curious. He glanced over and saw that Axel was awake and watching him. He was also sitting up a bit and the blanket had fallen away from his tanned, muscular chest. Mmm. Axel gave him a smile full of promises and Roxas had to yank his attention back to the phone by force as Alf started to talk again.

_Some damned soap opera and she took Marluxia with her. They can have her! Roxas, please, I need you._ Roxas frowned. He was tempted to refuse outright but he'd actually liked being on the telly. On the other hand…

"What d'you expect me to do without a budget?" If Larxene had spent everything there wasn't much he could do to fix that. There was a brief silence and Roxas' eyes widened. "What in hell Alf? Tell me you're not thinking –"

_That Axel would make a lovely presenter?_ Roxas choked at the thought. It was true but… _And, err, if he covered the shortfall no one would have to know about the budget. You see? _Alf sounded frantically cheerful. No doubt he was looking at his own firing and trying desperately to squirm out of it. Roxas thought hard for a moment.

"I'll have to talk it over with Axel." He didn't like Alf using him like this but on the other hand, Axel really would be a great presenter. Maybe he shouldn't reject it too quickly. "I'll call you back when we've decided." Roxas hung up briskly and Axel quirked an eyebrow at him.

"We? What's going on?" Axel questioned and Roxas quickly ran through the situation with him. The redhead looked shocked. "Me? Be a TV show host? Is he serious?"

"I'm sure he is." Roxas sighed. "To be honest, I'm tempted to tell Alf to sleep on the bed he made. But you know, I really liked that show. And I think you'd be good at it. Really, you would." Roxas was quite sure of that. Axel had a very good grasp of body language and how to speak in public. He was also very dramatic, had a pleasant voice and was already good at playing to the cameras. What more could you want really? "So… would you like to?"

"Buy a spot in a TV show, basically?" Axel sounded amused but he carefully considered it, eyes thoughtful. "Actually, I would. I liked being on the show with you and I've never found anything I wanted to do so far in my life. Maybe this could be it." Axel suddenly grinned. "And then we could spend all day together, every day!"

"Gack, pth!" Roxas mimed gagging as Axel pretended to be hurt. "Alright then, I'll give him a call back." Roxas flipped open the phone and quickly redialed the last number.

This would be an interesting change in their lives.


	9. Fin

"Welcome to _Home Sweet Home._" Axel smiled for the audience. "I'm Axel Esposito and I'll be your host from now on." He purred into the camera. Roxas was sure hundreds of lonely housewives were busy creaming their pants.

Things were going fabulously. The only major snag had been finding someone to replace Marluxia but Alf had managed to find a really nice girl named Rikku to take over. He felt having some women on the cast was important, especially since most of the viewers were female. So far Axel and Roxas were getting along with her fabulously. The set lacked some of the tension it had had in the past but he and Axel were making up for it by interjecting a comedy note. The ratings had already jumped a bit, despite the two PM time slot. Roxas was cautiously optimistic that they'd be getting a move to something better soon.

Roxas smiled as he watched Axel charming the socks off the middle aged couple whose house they were redoing. The daughter in particular was practically worshipping him, which was good since they were struggling to find a full length mirror for her in the budget. They were trying to stay in budget so Alf's superiors wouldn't realize what Larxene had done. They'd be less than amused to find out the show was getting private funding. Besides, searching for bargains in the thrift shop made for good TV.

Suddenly his cell phone went off. Roxas frowned and ignored it. He had it on vibrate and wanted to watch Axel. Whoever was calling could just leave a message. But they a moment later they called back. And again. Swearing to himself, Roxas found an out of the way spot to answer the call.

"Hello?"

_Roxas! Answer your phone! What do you have that thing for if you never answer it? _Sora. Roxas rolled his eyes.

"Hell's bells Sora, I'm at work! That's what I've got voice mail for. What the hell do you want?" He asked irritably. His brother was interrupting his Axel watching.

_Uncle Ralph's dead! _That immediately derailed Roxas thoughts and he blinked. Why did Sora sound so gleeful? Sure, they hadn't liked the bugger but – _He was strangled to death by a clothesline while he was stealing panties!_

"…Are you bloody well serious." This had to be a joke. It could not be true. The world just wasn't that perfectly ironic. Was it? But Sora was howling with laughter. "Oh my god you ARE?" Roxas choked on his own laughter, struggling to hold it in. He couldn't disrupt the shoot. He couldn't disrupt to shoot. He couldn't –

"Cut!" Alf called. "Roxas, where are you?" And that was it. He couldn't hold it in anymore. Roxas started to laugh helplessly as Axel peeked into the room, looking at him curiously. The daughter was right behind him, looking concerned.

"Roxy? What's up?" He could tell Roxas wasn't hurt or anything, but he was laughing until he was almost crying. "What's so funny?" Axel asked, perplexed.

"Uncle Ralph… he's dead." Roxas managed to choke out and Axel looked startled. He hadn't liked their uncle at all either but he couldn't imagine why that was funny. "He strangled to death on a clothesline stealing panties…!" Axel's eyes went wide as he tried to picture that. Then he snorted and pressed a hand to his face. The girl behind him blinked, a bit wide-eyed.

"I'll – I'll get you a glass of water." Axel said when he had himself under control. Roxas could hear him explaining to Alf that his uncle had just died in a highly amusing fashion as he struggled to get himself back together.

Sometimes, reality was just too much.

* * *

_A year later._

Roxas smiled to himself as he watched Axel playing a handheld puzzle game. It was one of the type where you tilted it to get the ball going into the right hole. Amusing although it did eventually get boring. But it was handmade of wood and would make a great souvenir when they got home. Roxas pulled out his guide book and consulted it as they stepped onto the subway. Axel put away his game as he grabbed hold of a pole. The subway was quite full, not at all surprising in Singapore.

"Alright, we need to get off in three stops I think." Roxas said after brief concentration. "Then it'll be a bit of a hike to the place we want, but not too bad. And then we'll have beef noodle soup." Roxas was looking forward to it. Street food in Singapore wasn't exactly street food. Stringent government regulations had swept the streets clean years ago, but the result was that a lot of apartment complexes had converted their first floors into the equivalent of food courts. They were searching for one noted complex in particular, and within that a stall that specialized in glorious beef noodle soup. It had been noted on numerous guides as a must see place.

"I hope it's not too crowded but I bet it will be." Axel prophesied and Roxas could only nod. They'd quickly discovered that the best places were usually crowded. Everyone knew what was good. Roxas smiled to himself as he thought about how everything was going.

He was still in love with Axel. In fact, sometimes he felt so in love with the redhead that it almost hurt. Best of all, he was sure Axel felt the same way. They'd even been tentatively talking about marriage, although Roxas wasn't sure how he felt about that. He'd never really thought of marriage before at all. If nothing else, who would wear the dress? Roxas grinned as the thought of Axel in drag crossed his mind. Then he banished the whimsy. They'd both wear suits of course, although Sora would probably suggest a gown for him. Sora and Riku were still a going concern. Roxas had thought his brunette twin would never settle down but it was really looking like Riku was the one.

_Home Sweet Home _was going well too. They'd been moved from their two PM time slot all the way to six PM. Not the perfect evening slot but pretty damn close. Their viewership had jumped dramatically and most of the change had been attributed to Axel. The redhead had finally found his niche in life. With his dramatic looks and easy stage presence, he was a natural on the telly. He charmed the socks off all the ladies and the men found him easy to get on with.

"I think this is it?" Roxas snapped out of his musings and glanced around before nodding. This was their stop. He and Axel stepped out along with the crowd and ascended the escalators into the street. "Which way?"

"Over there." Roxas pointed to a street sign to their right. Axel smiled and took Roxas' hand as they walked. The blonde looked up at him and Axel gently squeezed his hand. Roxas gave him a quick squeeze back, smiling. This was the perfect trip and the perfect day. The sun was shining and the world was right. How could things get any better?

Spectacular food did the trick. The lineups were as bad as Axel had predicted but they managed to nab two bowls of spicy beef noodle broth and a couple glasses of frothy green sugarcane juice.

"God that was good! Want to get an encore?" Roxas blinked at Axel who gestured at another booth that was almost as popular as the beef place. "They look to be selling something interesting."

"Oh! Sounds great." Roxas thought he could fit in a bit more. It had been a long time since lunch. "You want to get it?" Since it had been his idea Axel could stand in line. The redhead grinned.

"Sure!" It was quicker than the beef place and soon Axel was back with a couple plates of stir fried noodles with prawns, minced fish and some kind of pungent fish sauce that stank to high heaven. It still tasted wonderful and Roxas downed it with gusto. "Oh, and they gave me this too. It's a dessert, I thought you should have it." Axel offered him a small, foil covered package. Roxas grinned and opened it to find –

"What the bloody hell?" Roxas stared as he slowly extracted a little bag. It was red velvet and when he opened it and shook it, a ring fell into his hand. "Axel!" It was a smooth black titanium band and it suited Roxas' taste in rings perfectly. "What's this for?" It wasn't his birthday and he hadn't asked for anything like it. The redhead chuckled and placed a hand over his and Roxas looked into his green eyes, feeling stunned.

"Will you marry me?" Axel asked simply and Roxas felt his head reeling. Surely he couldn't mean it? "I think we've been together long enough. I want to be with you for the rest of my life, more than anything I've ever wanted in the world. Will you marry me?"

"I…" Roxas swallowed hard, all the old doubts and fears swirling through his mind. His parents marriage had always been bad and that had left its marks. Did he want to risk that? Could he afford NOT to risk it? Axel was everything to him. Everything. "I – of course I'll marry you." The words tumbled out and Roxas suddenly jumped to his feet, darting around the table to give Axel a hug. People were staring at them now but he didn't care. "Axel, I love you." He whispered in the redhead's ear, feeling overcome with joy. This was really happening. They were really going to do this.

"I love you too Roxas." Those warm, sincere words filled him with even more happiness. So did Axel's arms around him, cradling him close.

Life just did not get better than this.

_And until I say otherwise…_

_~FIN~_


End file.
